


Two Weeks Away

by under_the_silk_tree



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010), NCIS
Genre: Crossover, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Kate Lives, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Meet-Cute, Nightmares, Pre-Slash McDanno - Freeform, Pre-Slash McNozzo, Surfing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-21
Updated: 2020-11-05
Packaged: 2021-03-09 07:33:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27129979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/under_the_silk_tree/pseuds/under_the_silk_tree
Summary: It has been over a year since Kate was shot by Ari and after a lot of hard work she is finally on the verge of being reinstated at NCIS. Feeling worn down and out of sorts, Kate jumps at the chance to get away when Ducky offers her the use of his timeshare in Hawaii.
Relationships: Caitlin Todd/Kono Kalakaua, Jethro Gibbs/Ducky Mallard
Kudos: 15
Collections: 2020 NCIS Big Bang, Hurt/Comfort Bingo - Round 11





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Many many thanks to my two betas jdl71 & rose_malmaison who are seriously the best, without them this story would still be a well-intentioned mess. Any remaining mistakes are my own. Also a huge thank you to my artist rose_malmaison all of the art they made for this story is so beautiful and so well done. I am still giddy looking at them you can find their post [Here](https://ncis-bang.livejournal.com/106677.html). Thank you to solariana for putting this challenge together! Written for the ncis_bang. Also written for hc_bingo square: Nightmares. Also seventh fic for 100fandoms prompt: Waves. Title and story inspiration from the song [Sand in My Shoes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lrVymj9xHY) by Dido

**_Prologue_ **

Kate stared at the Victorian house across the street. She had been sitting in her car freezing her ass off for over a half hour. It was past midnight and Ducky was probably already asleep for pete’s sake. Taking a sip of coffee from her to-go cup, Kate grimaced at the taste; it was stone cold and from earlier in the day but caffeine was caffeine and she was not ready to go to sleep. Sleep was the enemy right now. 

Looking out the front windshield and seeing nothing but darkness and dirty snow, Kate couldn’t help but ask herself: _What was she doing here?_

Putting her coffee back into the cup holder in the center console and placing her hands on the wheel in preparation to leave, Kate saw her hands were still shaking. That’s why she was here. She hadn’t slept well since she had woken up from the coma to find the world had continued on without her and that her life would never be the same again. Her hand touched the side of her head reflexively; even through the black knit beanie she wore she could feel the long scar that was there. 

At a loud knock on her car window, Kate yelped, her whole body jerking in surprise at the unexpected noise. Heaving a sigh of relief at seeing Ducky’s friendly face on the other side, Kate hit the button that rolled down the window. 

“Caitlin, my dear it is thirty below out here. I have been waiting for you to decide to come inside for a while now, but I couldn’t in good conscience wait any longer,” Ducky said patiently as he reached for the handle opening the door. “Come on. I have some hot tea waiting for you.”

Kate smiled ruefully at being caught basically staking out the M.E.’s house, and got out of the car, following Ducky across the street.

**~NCIS/H50~**

Taking off her coat, scarf, and gloves, Kate handed them over to Ducky who hung up the jacket and placed the gloves on the side table by the door. 

“I’m going to check on mother real quick. Why don’t you go into the library? There is a tea tray there with some hot chamomile tea on it that should warm you right up,” Ducky said, then he started down the hall. 

Kate walked into the library taking in the tea tray. The moment she saw the roaring fire she let out a happy sigh, already feeling better. She reached up to take off the knit cap she was still wearing then hesitated. The long ropey scar she had been left with, thanks to Ari, went from her temple to about midway along the right side of her head. Even with the creative hairstyles she had started to employ, which managed to cover most of it, you could still see it, so she had taken to wearing hats whenever she could. Shaking her head at her vanity, Kate took the cap off and shoved it into her pocket, and picked up the tea kettle and poured herself a cup. After all, Ducky had already seen it many times so it’s not like it would be a surprise to him. 

Another shudder went up her spine as her body tried to regain some of the warmth she had lost by hanging out in her car at night in the middle of winter in Washington D.C. Blowing on the mug of tea she held in her hands, Kate turned herself towards the fire soaking up the heat like a lizard in the sun, but she continued to shiver. She took a sip of the too hot liquid trying to get some warmth to her core. Ducky’s library was always one of her favorite rooms in the house. There was something about the book-lined walls, with a fireplace at one end, that made her feel comforted, maybe because the room reminded her of the man who owned the house. She always found Ducky to be a comforting figure and someone she could go to for help if needed. 

Ducky walked into the room, and Kate hurriedly spoke up, “I hope I haven’t disturbed your mother?”

He waved away her concern. “She is still sleeping. Are you okay, my dear?” Ducky asked, a look of worry crossing his face as he sat in the armchair next to hers. 

“I will be. I just need to get warm,” Kate said, trying to smile reassuringly at the medical examiner. However seeing the look of concern deepen, she apparently hadn’t been successful. Wondering how much to tell him about the sense of unreality that persisted after waking to a world that was different from the one she remembered, or how she still had nightmares to the point her hands shook, or how she felt cold all the time no matter how many layers she wore. But she knew if she was that honest she could kiss her reinstatement goodbye so she decided to only be a little bit honest. “I’m just so tired of being cold,” she said, her teeth chattering a little bit, hating the fact that her voice sounded so fragile.

“Washington winters can be harsh and unforgiving,” Ducky said placidly. “But I don’t think that’s the only reason. How long have you felt cold, Kate?”

Kate forced herself to meet his gaze but this was why she had come here. So she breathed out a long sigh before saying, “Since I woke up.”

Ducky nodded encouragingly and she continued, “This winter has been very hard for me. I am cold all the time and so tired. At first I thought it was because of the head wound,” Kate said, once again touching the large scar she had on the side of her head, a permanent reminder of the day she almost died. If the wind hadn’t shifted at the exact moment Ari had fired his gun she probably would have taken a direct shot to the center of her head. “Some sort of lingering effects from the skull fracture, maybe nerve damage that the doctor’s weren’t aware of, or a leftover side effect from the weeks I spent in a coma.”

“Have you spoken to your doctor about this?” Ducky asked concern wrinkling his brow. 

Shrugging in resignation, Kate said, “I’ve been to my doctor and had a full workup done. There’s no medical reason for it. My doctor suggested my brain may have to relearn how to regulate my temperature. It can’t be proven or disproven by tests and in time my brain will heal. Or else it is all in my head and I have more problems than I thought.”

Ducky seemed to ponder her words for a moment before he said, “I know you have been working very hard to become reinstated at NCIS.”

Kate’s mouth quirked up on one side, feeling a bit of pride at what she had managed to accomplish in such a short amount of time and far sooner than her doctor had predicted. “Yeah, actually I have passed all of my tests, except for my gun certification. That I will take my first day back but I have been practicing at the range and I don’t expect any problems.”

“What did your doctor say about clearing you?”

“He wants to keep me on medical leave for three more weeks, and then I’ll be riding a desk for another month after that,” Kate said, running a hand sharply through her hair, not caring that it tugged at her scar causing a twinge of pain to race through her head. “I’m ready now. I think work is what I need to get back on track.” Kate looked up pleadingly at Ducky like she was trying to convince the both of them. She needed to get back to work, and once she was sitting at her desk surrounded by her colleagues, bickering with Tony, teasing McGee, and trying to impress Gibbs, everything would be fine. It would all be the way it was, the way she needed it to be.

“Caitlin…” Ducky started to say, and Kate turned towards the fire at the sympathy in Ducky’s voice. After a few minutes, when he didn’t continue, she reluctantly turned back. Instead of looking like he felt sorry for her, he seemed like he was in deep thought a look of consternation on his face. 

“Ducky?”

After a few moments of silence Ducky met her eyes and Kate saw his blue eyes were practically twinkling. “Kate, you have been working almost non-stop to be reinstated. Of course you are going to be tired and worn out. I have an idea. I remember Jethro saying you have three weeks until you report to NCIS. Have I ever told you I have a timeshare in Honolulu?”

Kate shook her head, and then she tried to switch gears from picturing the beige walls of NCIS to the tropical paradise of Oahu. 

“It is a quaint bungalow right on the beach, tucked away on a quiet street. I don’t use it very often but it is available when I need it. Why don’t you go for a couple of weeks?”

“I don’t know Ducky,” Kate said with uncertainty. “I should probably stay here and…” Her voice trailed off as she tried to think about exactly why she shouldn’t go. She had jumped through all the hoops NCIS and her doctor had set up for her reinstatement; now she was just waiting. 

Ducky waited a moment before placing a gentle hand on her arm. “I think a bit of rest and a change of scenery will do you good.”

Kate was still tempted to say no, worried that any deviation from her single-minded goal of returning to work would jinx it. Then a particular rough shiver ran through her and she closed her eyes, picturing warm tropical breezes and warm white sands. She opened her eyes and met the kindly blue eyes of Ducky and said, “Yes.”

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate pulled the duvet up to her chin, feeling warm from her shoulders to her toes for the first time today. She was currently in Ducky’s guest room, the older man having insisted she stay the night. Kate had only made a perfunctory protest before she had shuffled upstairs, thankful for having such a great friend in the M.D. and for not having to go back to a cold, empty apartment. They had talked until past one, ironing out the details of Kate’s trip to Hawaii, with the help of Ducky’s surprisingly modern computer that was tucked away in one corner of his library. Turning over, Kate couldn’t help thinking about when she was little and she would sit next to her grandmother on her overstuffed couch where they would watch an old Jack Lord TV show. The show took place in Hawaii and Kate remembered how enamored she had been with the different views of paradise she had seen. She had made a promise to herself that one day she would go there. And now, unbelievably, she would. 

As her eyes slipped close, Kate couldn’t believe that in forty-eight hours she would be on a plane flying across the country. Just as she was drifting off she heard the front door open and close, then Ducky and a voice she would recognize anywhere started a quiet conversation as they came up the stairs. Her eyes popped open as she realized one of her pet theories was now confirmed. She had always suspected that the two of them were more than just friends but she had never been one hundred percent sure. As she heard the footsteps retreat down the hall towards Ducky’s bedroom she closed her eyes again. Kate tried to go to sleep even though she had a million thoughts and questions now running through her head, both of her unexpected vacation and the fact Ducky and one Leroy Jethro Gibbs were apparently in a relationship. She also couldn’t help smirking a bit at the knowledge that Tony owed her twenty dollars.

**~NCIS/H50~**

Because Kate didn’t get up at the crack of dawn she missed Gibbs leaving, although she had a vague memory of hearing the front door closing before the sun even came up. She had meant to get up then but she had thought about it for too long and had fallen back to sleep. When she woke up again the sun was shining through the windows; and glancing at the clock she saw it was going on ten o’clock. Dressing in record time, Kate hurried downstairs, throwing her hair up into a messy ponytail, worrying that she had overstayed her welcome. First she showed up late at night and then she slept well past the time Ducky would need to go to work. Some friend she was _._

Walking into the kitchen, Kate saw Ducky was at the counter cutting vegetables and putting them into a crockpot that sat next to the stove.

When Ducky caught sight of her and he flashed a broad smile and said with exuberance, “Hello my dear, I hope you slept well?”

“Very well in fact,” Kate answered. She walked into the kitchen and stood next to him, resting her hip against the counter, and then continued on with a grimace, “Maybe too well. You should’ve woken me up earlier. I hope I haven’t kept you from anything.”

Ducky waved away her concern, “No, no, I don’t go into work until later this afternoon.” He put the knife aside and dumped the rest of the vegetables from the cutting board into what looked like a stew. Placing the lid on, he set the timer and then turned to her. “I figured after our late night planning you needed to sleep for as long as you could.”

“Well thank you Ducky. You’re a good friend,” Kate said fondly. 

“I try,” Ducky said, before he headed over to the coffee pot. “Now what would you like for breakfast?”

“Oh you don’t have to…”

Ducky interrupted as he poured coffee into a mug, “It is no trouble. I could make an omelet or maybe some toast?”

Kate knew Ducky would continue to insist, and she was awfully hungry, so she picked the easiest option. Reaching for the coffee up he offered to her, Kate conceded, “Just some toast please.”

Smiling his approval at her capitulation, Ducky waved her towards the breakfast nook. “Please have a seat.” 

Amused as the Scottish man started humming under his breath, Kate walked past the sink heading towards the small table tucked into the corner. As she did so she couldn’t help but notice that on one side of the kitchen sink there was already a coffee cup and two plates and some utensils, which made it more than obvious that two people had already eaten breakfast this morning. Determined to mind her own business, Kate sat down and cradled the coffee in her hands. She started thinking over everything that she would need to do in the next few days in order to be ready for her flight on Tuesday. 

She had just finished mentally going through her closet when Ducky placed a plate down in front of her and sat down next to her with his own cup, which held tea instead of coffee. The plate not only held toast but also a generous side of assorted berries. Kate immediately tucked into her food. Ducky kept her company with a steady stream of chatter about the various things to do in Hawaii, which didn’t require too much conversation from her and was fairly interesting. When she finished she sat back and said, “Thanks, I didn’t realize how hungry I was.”

Ducky nodded his head and then returned, “That does seem to be the way of it.” He shifted a bit in his seat and sighed. Clearing his throat, he caught her eye and said, “Caitlin, if you could keep what you learned here last night to yourself, I would appreciate it.”

“Of course, Ducky, it’s none of my business,” Kate said, hoping to reassure him, as both Ducky and Gibbs were very important to her and she would never want to hurt them by gossiping. 

Ducky nodded, and then opened his mouth to say something before seeming to think better of it. Then with a slight shake of his head, he spoke in a confidential tone of voice, “It’s not that we’re ashamed of our relationship, but we would just prefer to keep our personal lives separate from our professional. I don’t want our relationship to be fodder for the office gossip mill.”

Now it was Kate’s turn to nod her head. “I totally understand, Ducky.” And she did. The few times during her recovery when she had gone to NCIS to visit she had been hyperaware of the whispered conversations that would suddenly stop when she got too close. “Your secret is safe with me,” Kate reassured him. She could feel the guilt slither through her that she and Tony had already indulged in a bit of gossip about the two of them, so she made a silent vow to never do so again. 

“Thank you, my dear,” Ducky said gratefully, patting her hand gently. 


	2. Meet Cute

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kate is enjoying her vacation when she has a meet cute with the brilliant and lovely Kono.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again thank you to Rose_Malmaison for the gorgeous art.

_Wednesday_

Kate dug her feet into the warm sand, letting the fine grains slip in between her toes. The morning sun was bright and her bare legs were stretched out before her as she tried to soak up as much of its heat as possible. In deference to her pale skin, she had put on her cover-up after a brief dip in the aqua blue ocean earlier, the long sleeves protecting her skin as she tended to burn rather than tan. A large brimmed floppy hat to shade her face completed the ensemble. More than likely she looked ridiculous, but Kate didn’t care. She wasn’t here to look for a date and she wasn’t going to ruin her vacation by getting terribly burned her first couple of days.

Reaching into her oversized tote bag, Kate dug out her water bottle and took a few long swigs of the refreshing liquid. As she was putting it back a couple of surfers out on the ocean caught her eye. She watched as the pair sat on their boards waiting for the next wave. Grabbing her ever-present sketchpad out of the bag, Kate threw it open, using the pencil she always kept with it to quickly sketch them. She tried to capture the pair as they sat gently bobbing in the water, talking and laughing with each other. Even from this distance she could tell from the way they interacted they were fond of each other. 

When the duo started paddling towards the oncoming wave, Kate flipped to the next page, desperately racing to capture the power and grace of the surfers as they jumped to their feet at just the right moment to catch the wave as it crested at its peak. 

The sounds of the ocean and the various families on vacation faded into the background as she filled in the details before she forgot. Kate hadn’t felt this driving need to draw since before she had been shot, so she reveled in it as she went back and forth between the two pages adding a detail here and there. Once she got the two figures just right she started to fill in the background of the water, darker lines at the bottom and light wispy lines at the top to show how the sea foam curved inward as the wave started to collapse. 

Just as she added the last line to the edge of the page where it would give the illusion that the ocean was continuing into the distance, a shadow fell across the page. 

“That’s really good,” a feminine voice above her said. 

Starting at the unexpected sound, Kate realized she had zoned a bit while drawing and had forgotten she was on a public beach surrounded by people. Gibbs would have given her a head slap for being so careless, but at the same time she couldn’t help smiling because she hadn’t realized how much she had missed her passion to create. Looking up and squinting against the bright Hawaiian sun, Kate saw her admirer was a beautiful woman with shoulder length black hair that was dripping water onto her shoulders. Her brown eyes were framed by long lashes and her generous mouth was curved in a soft smile. Kate realized with a start that she was rudely staring and finally remembered to say, “Thank you.” 

The woman knelt down in the sand to get a closer look and said, “Wow, you have a really lovely style. You’ve captured the two of us perfectly.”

It was then that Kate belatedly realized the woman next to her was one of the two surfers she had drawn. “Thank you,” Kate stuttered out, feeling a blush spread across her face. What was it about a good-looking woman that always made her so flustered? “Um you…you as well…with the surfing obviously, not the drawing…” Kate trailed off. She forced herself to stop rambling and mentally rolled her eyes at how lame and tongue-tied she sounded.

“Thank you,” the woman returned a bit shyly before asking, “Have you ever tried surfing?”

“Oh no,” Kate breathed out. “I’ve thought about it but never really had the time. Plus there isn’t a lot of surfing in Washington D.C.” 

“Maybe I could…”

“Hey Kono, that was Danny, they think they have a lead on Henderson,” called a man standing next to a picnic table that held two surfboards. Kate saw that he was the second surfer she had drawn. She couldn’t help but note that he was also gorgeous, and that they were probably in law enforcement of some kind if she could take his sentence at face value. 

Kono looked regretful as she called over her shoulder, “Okay Cuz, I’ll be right there.” Then she turned back to Kate and said, “I’m Kono by the way and that’s my cousin Chin.” She held out her hand with an enticing smile.

Kate took the proffered hand in her own and said, “I’m Kate nice to meet you.”

They held each other’s gaze and the handshake went on a shade too long, and then Kono’s smile slowly widened before she said, “I have to go but hopefully I’ll see you around?”

Kate reluctantly let go of the other woman’s hand and said, “Yeah that sounds good.” As Kono got up and walked away Kate felt the urge to tell her where she was staying, to say something, anything, to prolong their conversation. Instead she watched the pair walk away surfboards tucked under their arms until they got lost in the crowd. What would be the point? When she was leaving in a little over two weeks? She definitely was not looking for a vacation romance. Kate had tried that a time or two when she was a naïve college student on spring break, and she had returned home with nothing more than regrets and a broken heart. 

Shaking her head trying to clear all thoughts of the lovely Kono, Kate slid her sunglasses onto her face and leaned back on her hands to watch the ocean. Out of the corner of her eye she could see her sketchbook, and thanks to a light breeze, the pages were ruffling slightly causing the two surfers to look like they were in motion. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

_A few days later…_

Kate shut the door to Ducky’s bungalow and locked it before she slipped the keys into her bag. She then made sure her sunhat sat tight on her head as the wind on the beach ranged from gentle to blustery and back again. Shifting through her tote, she checked again that she had all she would need for an afternoon at the beach; she hated forgetting something and being forced to come back and give up a good beach spot. Kate then started down the steps heading towards the well-worn path through the beach grass that would lead her to what had become her favorite section of beach. She was tired, as she had spent the morning at the Pearl Harbor Memorial Museum taking in the exhibits that honored those who lost their lives that day. She had been brought to tears and afterwards had come back to the house to lie down for a much needed rest. 

Kate really didn’t like to lie down during the day. She had never really been much of a nap-taker before she had been hurt. There was always too much to do and not enough hours in the day to waste it by sleeping. After she had woken up from her coma it seemed sleeping was all she could do most days. It had taken months before she could go a whole day without needing to sleep during the daylight hours, so now she was extra hesitant to lie down unless she absolutely had to. Although Kate reluctantly had to admit that she did feel better now that she’d slept for a few hours. 

Kate looked out along the beach searching for a spot she could claim as her own. The beach was never deserted this time of day. Instead, it was sprinkled with families and couples spread out amongst the sand. Spying a food truck that sold a variety of lunch and dessert foods, Kate detoured towards it an ice cream sounded very tempting at the moment. 

The line was three deep when Kate joined it, which gave her plenty of time to read over the menu that was painted on the side of the truck. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a man leaning against one of the tables set up for the food truck’s customers. She couldn’t even say what made her notice him, maybe because he wasn’t dressed for the beach; he had on jeans and a t-shirt with tennis shoes, instead of the customary swim trunks and tank tops that most of the men wore. As the line moved forward she also noticed he seemed to be alone and he wasn’t looking out at the ocean. In fact, his focus seemed to be on the families at the tables and those passing by. 

“Miss?”

Turning away from the suspicious man she realized it was her turn to order, she rushed out an “I’m sorry,” and quickly made up her mind to get the mango ice cream. Then after placing her order she slid over to the cashier at the adjacent window. Digging for her wallet in the cavernous tote, Kate glanced over and saw the man was gone. Shrugging one shoulder, Kate finally located her wallet, pulled it out and paid the smiling woman. She put an extra couple of dollars in the tip jar to make up for causing the line to back up. 

Ice cream in one hand and her wallet in the other, Kate shuffled off to the side trying not to get in anyone’s way. Taking a bite out of the soft serve, Kate headed towards an empty table, intent on setting everything down so she could put her wallet away and head towards her favorite spot on the beach. Just as she reached the table she was pushed hard from behind. She stumbled, catching the bench hard with her legs and cried out in surprise and pain. Dropping her ice cream in order to catch herself before the rest of her body slammed into the table, Kate felt her wallet snatched out of her hand. Looking up, she saw the man who had seemed so suspicious earlier take off down the sidewalk with her wallet in his hand. 

White hot indignation rose up. “Oh no you don’t,” Kate shouted before taking off after him, leaving her tote and ruined ice cream behind. She had recently passed her physical fitness test to be reinstated with NCIS so she was able to keep up with her mugger, although her sandals made for less than ideal running shoes. She knew this sidewalk led to a shopping center which was always bustling with tourists, so if she didn’t catch him before he reached it she could very well lose him in the crowd. Thankfully the walkway was mostly deserted and the few people on it saw them coming a mile away and stepped aside to let them pass. 

Running out of time, Kate pushed herself even harder until she was so close she was able to reach out to grab him only her fingers just brushed the back of the perp’s shirt. “Damn it,” Kate ground out when he put on a burst of speed and he slipped out of her grasp. 

They were yards from the first building and if a miracle didn’t happen soon Kate knew she would be out of luck. Then it happened, the man tripped over a raised crack in the sidewalk. He was able to recover and keep running but it gave Kate just enough time to catch up. Catching the man in a flying tackle, she brought him to the ground, scrapping her knees and hands painfully against the rough concrete. 

Her training automatically took over and she quickly gained control of the suspect. Kate had his hands behind his back and it was only when she tried to reach for her cuffs, which would usually sit on her hip, that she came back to the here and now. It was then she swiftly remembered that she was on medical leave from NCIS and she didn’t have her cuffs, her gun, or her badge for that matter. 

Looking up, she saw a group of people a safe distance away clustered together gawking at the two of them. She could imagine the picture they made. The would-be mugger face down with his hands behind his back carrying on, saying he was sorry, and how he just needed a little cash to get off the island. Kate in a one piece swimsuit with a sarong that was more off than on at this point, and she could see out of the corner of her eyes that her hair was wildly askew, having lost her hat in the chase. 

“Hey could one of you call the police?” Kate finally called out in desperation when the group of tourists continued to stare at them unhelpfully. Her question seemed to wake them up and they started digging into pockets and purses for their phones. Within a few short minutes she thankfully heard the wail of sirens in the distance. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate sat on a convenient bench next to the road holding napkins, given to her by a kind food vendor, onto her bloody knees. She was achy and sore and just wanted to go back to the bungalow but she hadn’t been released by the officers yet. Kate wondered what the holdup was, because she had given her statement and had answered all of their questions, and the man she had tackled was in handcuffs and firmly stuffed into the back of a squad car. She had even told the police about her being an NCIS agent, hoping it would speed things along–but unfortunately it did not. 

“Ma’am, we’ll let you go in just a minute. We are just waiting on the Five-O detectives to arrive. They may have a few questions for you,” a very young looking officer by the name of Keahi said a bit nervously.

“Detectives?” Kate asked warily, wondering why they were interested in the would-be mugger.

“Yeah I guess they have been looking for him for awhile,” the officer said offhandedly, before wincing and quickly walking back to the squad car when he seemed to realize he probably shouldn’t be sharing that information with a civilian. Kate could only feel sympathy for the young man as she remembered a few rookie mistakes she had made when she was just starting out. 

Pulling the napkins away from her knees, she saw the paper was starting to stick to the wounds, so she balled the napkins up and tossed them in the garbage can sitting at the end of the bench. She was trying to put her hair up into a ponytail with a rubber band she found in her wallet when a silver Mustang and a black truck pulled up. Out of the Mustang came a tall man with brown hair followed by a shorter man with blond. They immediately went over to the squad car and peeked in the window, and Kate heard the blond say excitedly, “That’s him.”

Then out of the corner of her eye she saw the driver of the black truck step out, and Kate felt her eyebrows rise in shock at the fact that Kono apparently wasn’t just in law enforcement, but she was in an elite task force that Kate had even heard about all the way in Washington D.C . She watched as Kono walked over and conferred with the other two detectives who were joined by the officers. The older officer, whose name she never got, took out a small notebook. He went over what was probably her statement then all five glanced in her direction when Officer Keahi pointed her out. She smiled a bit when she saw Kono do a double take; it gave her a small thrill that the other woman apparently remembered her.

She watched as the detectives transferred the mugger from the squad car to the Mustang. After talking for a moment to Kono, the two detectives got into their car and drove off. Kono walked over to Kate, and then when she got close, Kate stood, her knees throbbed painfully.

“Are you okay?” Kono asked real concern tingeing her voice.

Kate held out her palms to show her scrapes. “It’s not as bad as it looks.”

Kono took one of her hands in hers and took a closer look, wincing a bit. “Ouch, I’m sorry about what happened to you. Good catch though,” Kono said with a smile.

Smiling a bit distractedly in return, Kate couldn’t help but focus on the fact that her hand was cradled in both of Kono’s, causing a warm curl in her stomach, “Thanks, it may not have been the smartest thing but I just couldn’t let him take off with my wallet like that.”

When Kono looked up from examining her hand Kate saw her eyes flicker briefly to the right and she knew that Kono had seen her scar. Which was why she used hats and hairstyles to hide it as much as possible; people noticed it and then inevitably felt the need to comment. Kate’s free hand moved involuntarily, wanting to hide her scar behind her hair. Instead, she forced herself to wait for Kono to ask about it, just as others had thoughtlessly done.

When she didn’t, Kate felt a sense of relief flow through her, and then asked the first question that popped into her head, “So you’re Five-O?”

“Yes. And you’re NCIS,” Kono stated with a twinkle in her eye. Their gazes held and Kate could feel the pull between them flare up again. 

“Let me give you a ride back to where you’re staying,” Kono said a bit breathlessly and gently let her hand go. 

Kate, who hadn’t been looking forward to limping with scraped knees all the way back to the bungalow, gladly accepted. As they drove, Kono had Kate go over her statement again. They stopped briefly at the food truck where Kono insisted Kate stay in the truck while she went and gathered up Kate’s tote, and even located her wayward hat. Once back at the bungalow, Kono followed Kate up to the door, and Kate, not wanting her time with the detective to be over, invited her in. 

Limping over to the living room, Kate sat down heavily on the couch. Kono closed the door behind her and asked, “Do you have a first aid kit?”

“Um, I think I saw one in the bathroom, under the sink,” Kate called out as Kono went down the hallway towards the bathroom. Kate swallowed nervously as the butterflies in her stomach intensified the longer she was in Kono’s company. When Kono returned with a small white box Kate stuttered, “You don’t have to do that…I can…”

“I don’t mind,” Kono interrupted, gently setting down the first aid kit and washcloth she had brought back with her on the wooden coffee table in front of the couch. She then sat on the couch next to Kate, and opened the kit. She then picked up one of Kate’s legs and placed it in her lap. Her touch was warm and gentle, Kate still winced slightly as Kono started to clean out the scraped knee with a warm washcloth. 

“Sorry,” Kono murmured, looking up with a remorseful expression. 

“That’s okay,” Kate softly. Kono then patted the knee with a dry cloth and switched legs beginning the process over again. As the silence lengthened, Kate desperately searched for something to say now that she had a chance to talk to Kono, when she had honestly thought she would never see her again. 

“Have you always loved surfing?” Kate asked and then instantly regretted it, wondering if it was a stupid question. She was never quite sure how to talk to people she was attracted to.

“I grew up surfing. My mother taught me and as I got older I started to enter tournaments,” Kono said, gently moving Kate’s leg off her lap and then reaching for her hand to begin the process all over again with Kate’s scraped palms.

Kate knew she should probably insist on washing her own hands, but she couldn’t help kind of liking being taken care of by the intriguing woman sitting next to her. So instead she listened as Kono told her about the surfing tournaments and how she grew good enough to be able to make a career at it. Now, Kate didn’t know a lot about professional surfing, but she had a feeling that not a lot of people could make a living at it, so Kono must’ve truly been special in order to do so. 

When Kono was finished, she put down the washcloth and lifted Kate’s hand up to gently blow across the injury. It soothed the pain but also causing a shiver to go down her spine. She couldn’t help but wonder how Kono’s mouth would feel against her own. Kono then looked up at her from beneath her lashes, her gaze was heated, and if it meant what Kate thought it did she had a feeling she wasn’t the only one. But just as Kate was thinking about leaning forward a few inches more and closing the gap, Kono’s phone rang and they both jumped apart. 

Smiling apologetically as she stood up, Kono answered her phone and walked a few feet away. Kate got up, trying to slow down her rapid heartbeat. Picking up the first aid kit, she took it back into the bathroom while giving herself a stern talking to about how kissing a Hawaiian detective, no matter how attractive, would be a bad thing in her life right now. After putting the kit back and getting a look at her out of control hair in the bathroom mirror. Kate tried to tame her hair as quickly as possible, and walked back into the living room just as Kono said, “Yes, I will.”

Kono turned to her and said, “That was my boss and I am needed back at the office.”

“Oh okay,” Kate said, disappointment welling up in her as she followed Kono to the door. She opened it for her and leaned against it for support. 

Kono turned towards her and said, “I don’t think we will need to ask you anymore questions, but if we do, I have your number.” 

Kate wanted to say something about how Kono could call her anytime but that sounded bad even in her head, plus she wasn’t here looking for a temporary romance, so she said instead, “It was nice seeing you again.”

“Yeah it was nice…,” Kono said, and then opened her mouth to say something but abruptly closed it, seemingly thinking better of whatever she was going to say. She appeared to be wrestling with something before continuing, “Well, I should go.” Kono looked a bit flustered before she turned and started to walk down the steps. 

Already feeling a sense of regret stealing over her, Kate reluctantly began to close the door.

“Wait!”

Her heartbeat fluttering, Kate pulled the door back open. Kono was jogging back up the stairs with a look of uncertainty on her face, and she said a bit breathlessly, “Um…I was wondering if you wanted to go to a barbeque this evening at my boss’s place? It is really casual and the food will be plentiful.”

Kono had barely finished her sentence when Kate answered, “Yes!” Kate couldn’t have been more surprised by her answer, all reasons for not getting involved with the detective leaving her head. Clearing her throat trying to get herself under control, Kate said calmly, “Uh…I mean that sounds good.”

Now Kono had a wide smile, “Good…okay. I’ll pick you up around six.”

“Okay,” Kate repeated, her smile matching Kono’s. She watched as the other woman walked back to her car and drove away. 

Closing the door, Kate leaned back against it, a flush rising to her cheeks. “I have a date,” she whispered.


	3. Second Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kate has second thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another gorgeous picture from Rose_Malmaison. Thanks for the kudos! I hope you enjoy the new chapter!

Kono was back at the bungalow promptly at six and she even brought Kate a bouquet of tropical flowers. Kate accepted the bouquet with a blush and gave her a kiss on the cheek in thanks, before finding a suitable container to put them in. Afterwards they hopped into Kono’s car, and within thirty minutes they had pulled up to an unassuming beachfront house. Kate couldn’t help being nervous but she took comfort from the way Kono had placed her hand on the small of her back, guiding her as they walked up to the front porch. Kate had chosen to forgo the hat that she usually wore in an effort to hide her scar. Instead she carefully braided a large section of hair on the right side, that was both decorative and managed to cover the scar nicely, and then she let the rest of her hair hang loose. She wasn’t sure if it would honestly fool anyone but it made her feel better.

A couple of delightful hours later Kate wondered why she had been so anxious. The food had been good and plentiful just like Kono had said, and the Five-O team had made her feel more than welcome. After dinner Kate had been shooed out of the kitchen when she attempted to help clear up, by the head of the Five-O Steve McGarrett and his partner Danny Williams. She could hear the two bickering behind her as she walked out the back doors onto the lanai. Kate leaned against one of the pillars and looked out towards the ocean. It was so beautiful here. She could definitely get used to the gorgeous scene before her.

_What must it be like to see this kind of view every day?_

She saw two people walking along the shoreline and she realized it must be Chin and Malia taking a moonlight stroll further down the beach. Earlier, Kono, seeing how nervous she was on the way over, had given her the rundown on everyone who would be there. Chin, who was her cousin, had been the one to recommend Kono for Five-O. Before joining he had been a cop with HPD and now he was third-in-command of the unit. He was not only a great detective but he was stellar with technology. He was very kind and polite as well, which made her think of him as the McGee of the team. He was married to–and completely smitten–with his wife Malia - who was an oncologist with the local hospital, and she seemed to be a sweet and caring person as well. 

Turning back to face the house in search of her date instead Kate saw Steve and Danny through the kitchen window. It looked like the two of them were in the process of hand washing the dishes. Steve, who Kate learned was the head of Five-O was also a former Navy Seal, and had been given command of the task force when he had come back to the island after his father was killed. Steve was tough, but a fair boss, and treated them more like family than colleagues, according to Kono. 

Kate watched as Steve reached over with one hand, which was covered in soap bubbles, and placed a perfect dollop on the end of Danny’s nose. That started what looked to be the beginnings of an epic water fight between Steve and his second-in-command Danny. Danny Williams was the father of one adorable little girl, and, as Kate learned, he was more than happy to show her pictures of Grace that were on his phone. He was also a recent transplant from her neck of the woods, and he was a very competent detective who kept the team on the straight and narrow. Kate was brought out of her contemplation when she felt someone bump her shoulder with their own. 

Smiling over at Kono who had snuck up on her, Kate said, “Hey.”

Kono softly echoed the word, “Hey.”

Tearing her eyes away from the other woman so she would give in to the temptation to kiss her, Kate saw the two men were now both soaked and Steve, in an attempt to stop Danny from splashing him even more, had grabbed him from behind in a bear hug. Both men were almost red-faced from laughter as they play-fought. 

Even though she had only shared one dinner with Danny and Steve, she couldn’t help noticing the two men were very close; there were a lot of little touches and looks that seemed to go beyond friendship and Kate couldn’t help wondering about their relationship. So when Kate caught Kono’s eye she asked, “Um are they…together,” hoping the other woman would understand what she was trying to say and not get offended. 

Kono answered, “Oh yeah…,” before giving the pair a considering look and continuing, “well kind of. I don’t think the two of them have realized it yet, but everyone else has.”

Kate nodded in understanding; she knew a couple of guys like that as well, and she wasn’t thinking about Ducky and Gibbs this time. 

“Do you want to take a walk?” Kono asked, as she reached up and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. 

“Of course,” Kate answered, slipping off her sandals and pushing them with her foot under one of the deck chairs. 

The sand was cool against her bare feet but it still retained enough of the day’s warmth to be comfortable. They walked towards the ocean, taking a route that led them in the opposite direction of Chin and Malia. Kate had always loved the sound of the ocean, especially at night it was so soothing. Listening to Kono talk about one of her first surf lessons that her mother had given her, Kate decided that Kono’s voice, on the other hand was more like honey, and settled over her slow and sweet. She also learned more about the end of Kono’s career as a surfer, and how she had been devastated for a long time about that abrupt change to her future. The talk turned from surfing to what their day-to-day lives looked like at their particular agencies. 

Kate found herself sharing things she normally wouldn’t talk about with someone she had just met, but Kono was easy to talk to, and being in law enforcement as well meant she understood all of the triumphs and frustrations that came with it. She talked about how she had been in the Secret Service but then had been recruited by Gibbs. Kate spoke about Tony and Tim, Ducky, Jimmy, and Abby, but the one thing she avoided was anything about how she had come by her scar, and that over a year and a half ago she had almost died. Instead she talked about anything and everything but that and if Kono noticed a huge gap in her life story she didn’t say anything.

As they walked and talked sometimes their shoulders and hands would brush against each other, making Kate hyperaware of the woman next to her. She wanted to slip her fingers in between Kono’s and hold her hand. Instead she reached up and tried to get her hair under control as it was whipped around by the wind. 

“Here let me help.” 

Kono turned her around to face the ocean and Kate felt her gather her hair into her hands before using a hair tie to put it up into a ponytail. Once it was secure Kono placed her warm hands on Kate’s shoulders turning her back around again. 

Kate felt the thank you, she had been about to say die in her throat as she took in the warm look in Kono’s eyes as she reached over and tucked a few errant strands behind her ear. Then she curved her fingers around Kate’s neck. Her palm felt hot against the cool of Kate’s skin and she couldn’t help giving a slight gasp against Kono’s lips as they brushed tenderly against Kate’s own. Kate placed a hand on Kono’s waist, drawing the other woman closer as the kiss deepened. 

Kate felt a surge of want sweep through her so quickly that her knees went weak. She opened her mouth against Kono’s who responded in kind. The kiss seemed to go on and on. Kate wrapped her arms around Kono’s neck as desire for more made itself known. 

Kate wanted. 

She wanted to take Kono back to the bungalow and love her for the rest of the night. She wanted to spend all the next day just the two of them learning more about each other. She wanted just more of this smart, amazing, lovely woman. 

Only…she wouldn’t get more then maybe another week. Kate didn’t live in this island paradise and after next week she would probably never see Kono again. Even if this spark of desire, and the mutual interest they seemed to have for each other could lead to more, long distance relationships didn’t work, especially not cross-country ones. They had no future together, and Kate had enough on her plate right now with getting reinstated at NCIS and dealing with all that entailed. She wasn’t going to set herself up for heartbreak for a week’s worth of moonlit kisses. No matter how much she wanted to. 

_What was she doing?_

Kate felt like a bucket of cold water had just been thrown over her. “Wait,” she said, pulling herself unwillingly out of Kono’s arms. “I’m sorry. I can’t.”

Kono looked at her in concern, “What’s wrong?”

Laying a hand reassuringly on Kono’s arm, Kate said, “It’s not you. I just can’t do this.”

Kono opened her mouth to say something but Kate interrupted her, needing to explain, “When I was younger I made the mistake of thinking a few weeks in some far off place with someone I was attracted to meant I was in love. All it turned out to be was infatuation that turned into hurt and regret.”

Kate didn’t want Kono to be mad at her, but at the same time it was better to be upfront with what she was feeling. Glancing over at Kono, Kate was surprised when, instead of anger, she saw nothing but understanding. 

With a slight smile Kono asked, “Kate do you know how many tourists visit Hawaii every year?”

When Kate shook her head Kono took her hand comfortingly in hers and said, “Over seven million, and when I was young and naïve there was a time or two when I also had an ill-fated romance with someone who was only in my life temporarily. So I understand where you are coming from.”

They held each other’s gaze for a long time and then Kate broke eye contact, instead choosing to look out over the beach, watching the waves crash on the shore. She knew that Kono with her kind eyes, so full of understanding, could probably even now convince her to give them a chance. 

“Hey,” Kono said softly, and then when she said nothing else, Kate looked up. Kono continued, the smile on her face tremulous, “I like you, Kate in a way that I haven’t liked someone in a long time.” Then she seemed to calm down and said, “But you are right about the fact we will only have at most another week together. So how about we play it smart for the next week? Instead of dates, how about I show you my Hawaii but only as friends?”

Kate felt both relief and disappointment at Kono’s offer. Relief that Kono was being so nice about the fact that Kate had completely done a one-eighty right in the middle of their date, but perversely she was also disappointed because Kono hadn’t even tried to talk her out of it. 

Shaking her head at her own hypocrisy, Kate took a deep breath in thanks she had met this gracious and understanding woman, and said, “That sounds good. I could use a friend.”

“Okay then,” Kono said confidently, and they both, turned back in tandem towards Steve’s house. She then continued with a bit uncertainty, “How about tomorrow evening we go to the local art museum? They are having an exhibition of Tetsuo Ochikubo’s art. It’s the last day and I’ve been dying to go see it but with work and family I haven’t had a chance yet.”

“That sounds really good,” Kate said with enthusiasm. She then went on to explain that she had taken an art history class in college whose professor loved Ochikubo’s art, and so she was excited to see some of his work in person rather than on a slide projected onto a wall in a lecture hall. 

Kono beamed at her and then started to lean over, but drew back with a look of apology on her face. They walked the rest of the way back to Steve’s house in companionable if awkward silence. 

When the two of them returned, Kate saw that Chin and Malia had beaten them back and were comfortably ensconced on a bench swing. Kate was putting on her sandals when Danny and Steve walked outside, both with new shirts on, which Kate could only assume was because their others had been soaked through from their impromptu water fight. They had also brought with them what looked like a box full of fried pastries. 

Danny was in the process of handing them out when Steve’s phone beeped alerting to an incoming text message. Just as Kate took a bite out of one of the most delicious fried foods she had ever eaten Steve let out an excited, “Yes!” and slapped Danny enthusiastically on the back. 

“Henderson just agreed to flip on Morris,” Steve said triumphantly.

The other three Five-O members let out whoops of their own and then began to talk excitedly to each other about the hows and whys of the case. From what Kate could gather, her would-be mugger was none other than Henderson, a low-level drug dealer who the unit had been looking for the last two weeks. They had been hoping he would flip on his boss James Morris, who apparently was currently laying low letting his lieutenants run the business for him. 

“Okay, tomorrow, bright and early we check out all his normal haunts,” Steve announced.

Chin held up his phone, “I’ve just sent you each all current and past mug shots.”

“Yeah, more than likely he’s changed his appearance already, but they should give us a good baseline to go from,” Danny interjected. 

Their phones all beeped, and Kate couldn’t help looking over Kono’s shoulder at the photo of Morris. Morris was six feet tall and weighed over two hundred pounds; with the various face tattoos he looked rough. Kate could tell just from the photo that he was a bear of a man and would be very difficult to arrest without a fight. Watching and listening to the four of them divide up the various addresses they had connected with Morris, Kate couldn’t help but feel a longing to be in the thick of police work again. She missed helping people and getting bad guys off the street.

When Kono looked over, Kate found herself blushing at getting caught, essentially eavesdropping. Kono gave her a conspiratorial wink and nudged her knee with her own before returning back to her screen and the discussion about who was taking what address. Kate caught herself tracing Kono’s features with her eyes as the other woman argued her point about why one place was more likely than the other. She radiated passionate intensity, and Kate could see how much she loved her job, and she knew Kono was good at it just by some of the points she was making and the fact that she obviously cared so much. Kate tried not to blush as she thought of what that passion would look like directed at her, trying to remember they had agreed to just be friends.

After that the party broke up rather quickly, with the four team members needing to get up early in order to meet back at Five-O headquarters. Kono drove her back and promised to call her tomorrow with the time they could meet at the museum. The Morris case made it difficult for Kono to give her a definite time. Kate reassured her that, considering what she also did for a living, she totally understood. She also refused to allow Kono to walk her to her door. Not only were they no longer on a date, but Kate didn’t want the temptation that was Kono, backlit by the moonlight with the sound of crashing ocean waves and a divinely soft king sized bed only yards away to contend with. So she waved goodbye to her from her porch and let herself into the bungalow, and told herself it was stupid to feel disappointed and bummed because this was what she had wanted. Yawning deeply, Kate quickly got ready for bed and then slid in between the sheets determined not to think anymore. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate knew she was in a dream the moment she stepped out onto the roof. Even knowing that she couldn’t seem to stop what came next. She never could. The wind was almost blowing her across the roof towards her final destination. The day was bright and she was squinting against the sun looking for Ari but she already knew she would never find him in time. Tony and Gibbs’ voices were nonexistent although she could see their mouths moving. The only sound was the wind. 

No…that wasn’t right–there was something else it. There was a low pitched whine that at first she could barely hear over the wind, but as she moved forward unwillingly and inexorably, it got steadily louder. Then events sped up, only to slow back down when Gibbs helped her up off the ground after she jumped in front of him. Kate saw both of them fade away and then disappear completely, and then it was just her. The wind abruptly stopped, leaving only the low hum that was getting louder and louder…or maybe she meant closer and closer. She spun wildly in a circle trying to see but it was already too late. The sound became a bullet and then Kate saw nothing. 

Kate shot up in bed with a scream, arms and legs moving as she tried to escape from the memory. Her legs became entangled in the sheets, and in her desperation she fell off the side of the bed, hitting the floor with a painful thump. Lying on the bedroom floor, Kate sobbed uncontrollably despite trying to slow her ragged breathing. Squeezing her eyes tightly shut, Kate dug the heels of her hands into them and tried to recall the breathing techniques her therapist had taught her. Thankfully they eventually worked, and her breathing started to slow with only the occasional hitch in her chest. When she had calmed enough to finally think clearly she was able to push away the sheets still wrapped around her legs. 

Choking back the tears that wanted to escape, Kate stood up and tried to get her bearings in the dark and unfamiliar bedroom. Wiping the unshed tears from her eyes, Kate staggered out to the living room and, spying her phone, she started to reach for it, her only thought to call Kono and talk to her, to seek comfort from a friendly voice. Then she stopped when she saw the time; it was three o’clock in the morning she couldn’t wake up the woman who she had only met a day ago because she had a nightmare. Instead she went over to the couch and turned on the TV, needing the background noise to distract her so she could get some distance from her nightmares. She stared at the TV without really seeing it until the room lightened with the coming dawn. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

_Four Days Later_

Kate stepped out of the corner coffee shop and found herself squinting against the bright Hawaiian sun. Pulling her sunglasses out of her bag, she quickly put them on and started to walk leisurely back to the bungalow. Taking a sip of her iced coffee, Kate couldn’t help smiling a bit to herself. These last four days with Kono had been the happiest she had experienced since the coma. Their non-date to the Ochikubo exhibit had only been the start. They had met together every day as soon as Kono’s shift was over. One afternoon Kate had even met with Kono on her lunch break at a really good shrimp truck that was parked right on the beach.

Yesterday they had spent the day at the beach laying side by side on their towels, talking the day away. Kono spent most of their time trying to talk Kate into giving surfing a chance. Kate wanted to, but she pretended she didn’t because Kono’s reasons as to why she should became more and more ridiculous until the two of them were almost laughing too hard to continue speaking. And as the afternoon had bled into evening they had packed up their stuff, and after a quick change of clothes, they had walked down to a local pub where they had decided on a table near the stage. Over the next few hours they enjoyed cocktails while listening to a local jazz band. 

When Kate saw couples pull each other onto the small dance floor she had wanted to do the same. She wanted to take Kono’s hand in hers and then gather her into her arms and dance the hours away together–but in the end she hadn’t. Instead she had taken a huge gulp of her mai tai and kept her hands to herself, mentally listing all of the reasons why doing exactly that was a very bad idea. She had to review the list again when Kono had dropped her off at the end of the night. Kate had wanted nothing more than to lean over and kiss her and invite her in, instead she had thanked Kono for an awesome day and went inside. Alone.

Kate heard a faint beep from her purse and moved to one side, out of the way of all the people on the busy sidewalk. Retrieving her phone from the bottom of her overstuffed bag, she couldn’t help the smile that broke out on her face. It was from Kono and she was confirming where they were meeting for dinner. She described it as a quaint little place near the overlook that had breathtaking views. It sounded like a great place to have a date… if that’s what the two of them were doing… which they weren’t because they were just friends. Kate wondered how long she would have to keep telling herself that before she believed it. 

Putting her phone back in her purse, Kate looked up just in time to see James Morris stride right past her before the crowd swallowed him up. She stood there in shock before rushing after him. When she got close enough so that she could tail him without making it obvious that she was in fact following him, she slowed down and began to fish her phone back out of her bag. He looked vastly different from his booking photo. He had shaved his head and grown a beard but Kate was sure it was him. It was hard to hide that many face and neck tattoos, no matter what you do to your hair.

Finally getting a hand on her phone, Kate tried to keep an eye on Morris while maintaining a fair distance, and look for Kono in her contacts at the same time. It was no easy feat but finally she was able to find Kono’s name. Hearing it ring, Kate silently prayed that the other woman would pick up. When Kono’s voicemail began, Kate cursed under her breath and hit the end button. She didn’t know any of the other Five-O’s numbers, so she tried again. As the phone continued to ring, Morris started to pick up speed and Kate matched it, her unease growing as she once again got Kono’s voicemail.

Morris stopped suddenly and turned to look in a store window. Kate slowed down to a crawl wondering why Morris stopped; he didn’t seem like the window-shopping type. Glancing further down the street, Kate saw what had made the crime boss so antsy. Two patrol cars were sitting in a parking lot that was kitty-corner from where they were. It looked like the officers inside were just talking to each other, but as she watched Morris from the corner of her eye she could see the man start to unravel. He was biting his thumb and he looked like he was talking himself. He was definitely panicking, and a panicking criminal was an extra dangerous one.

Kate saw the two patrol cars drive off. Morris immediately started walking again and she followed. Grimacing, Kate knew she couldn’t wait any longer she needed to call 911 and tell them a wanted felon had been sighted. Just then her phone started to ring and seeing that it was Kono a wave of relief swept through her. 

“Hi, Kate sorry I missed your calls…” Kono said.

Kate interrupted, “Kono, I am on Juniper Lane between Oak and Palm, and James Morris just walked past me.”

“What!” Kono shouted before she said, “Okay which direction is he headed?”

“South on Juniper, he seems very agitated,” Kate said, looking both ways as she jogged across an intersection. Morris was about a quarter of a block ahead of her and he seemed to be picking up speed so Kate broke out into a jog. 

Kate heard Kono speaking to the others giving them all the pertinent information. 

“Are you following him?”

“Yes,” Kate said a little breathlessly. “He’s moving quickly. Morris is wearing a black hoodie, blue jeans, white sneakers. He has shaved his head and grown a beard. Also I think he is in something of a hurry…wait…what’s he doing?” Kate dodged around a few people standing right in the middle of the sidewalk. 

Finally getting past them, Kate saw Morris grabbing door handles of the cars parked along the street, checking to see if they were locked. 

“He keeps trying door handles. I think he’s looking to steal a car,” Kate said quietly, trying to keep her voice down now that she was closer, not wanting to tip the crime boss off that she was onto him. 

“Okay we are on our way,” Kono said, Kate could hear the slamming of car doors and the starting of engines. “We should be there in twenty. Stay on the phone…”

“Will do, so far he is still checking cars but he is getting more and more agitated,” Kate said, her voice a little breathy. “Damn it, he’s found one that is unlocked.”

Morris gave a triumphant shout when he was finally lucky and he managed to wrench open the door of an older model Chevy. Sliding into the front seat, he then started yanking the wires out from underneath. Kate, who had stopped a few car lengths away, was trying to look like she wasn’t blatantly staring as she racked her brain to figure out what to do. She didn’t want him to get away, but at the same she was on medical leave from NCIS. She had no authority, especially as he wasn’t putting anyone in physical danger, only then would she be justified in stepping. On the other hand, he was a very dangerous criminal so wouldn’t taking him off the streets be better than letting him get away, where he could cause more damage? Although, if she tried to confront him now more than likely she would just create a more dangerous situation. The street they were on was crowded with people who could become hostages, especially if Morris panicked.

“He’s got the wires out from underneath and he’s trying to start it now,” said Kate as she got even closer, taking note of the license plate should he actually take off. 

“Hey! Get away from my car,” came a shrill voice from a store a couple of doors down.

“Oh no…” Kate breathed out, as a petite blond woman came charging across the sidewalk. Morris stood, reaching under his hoodie. In that moment, Kate knew he had a gun and knew what she had to do. 

Kate shouted into her phone, “He’s got a gun.” Then dropping the phone and her bag, Kate ran forward yelling instinctually, “Freeze, NCIS!”

Morris whipped around, his eyes widening in shock, his arm swinging out from his behind his back, clutching what looked like a Glock in his hand. Just as he brought the gun up and pointed it at her chest she reached him. Kate felt the world around her slow to a crawl as she stared down the barrel of the gun. All she could think was: _this isn’t going to happen again._

Grabbing the gun in his hand, she gave it a vicious twist putting all her weight into it until she thought she heard a pop. Morris screamed out, due to the fact that she had more than likely broken his trigger finger. He then brought round his left fist, hitting her ribcage. Thankfully she had just been stepping forward so it was more of a glancing blow, but considering Morris was six-two and two hundred pounds, it still hurt. Kate knew she wouldn’t win in an out-and-out brawl so she had to end this fast. So she gripped the back of his head with her other hand and pulled down viciously as she swiftly brought her knee up. There was a sickening crack as his face bounced off her knee. Morris dropped like a sack of potatoes, curling up into a fetal position holding his nose. Blood oozed through his fingers and wailed for all he was worth.

“You bitch! You broke my nose,” Morris screamed up at her.

“Shut up,” Kate shouted, her voice rough with adrenalin, as she secured the gun in her waistband. She quickly rolled Morris over, wrenching both hands behind his back, getting a sense of déjà vu from when she took down the mugger. The feeling was completed when a gray Camaro and a black truck came to a screeching halt right next to them. Kono and Danny jumped out with Chin and Steve right behind them. Danny and Steve quickly took over, pulling out a pair of handcuffs. Kono helped her up and Kate handed Chin the gun, more than happy to get rid of it.

“Are you okay?” Kono asked, her eyes wide with concern and just a bit of panic. Her hands were on Kate’s shoulders, her thumbs brushing gently and soothingly back and forth against her skin. 

Kono’s voice almost sounded like it was underwater so Kate’s automatic response that was on the tip of her tongue that she was fine was probably not true; it was then she noticed she was also shaking. Kate wanted to step forward into Kono’s arms and have her hold her until the shaking stopped, but knew she couldn’t. Her ribs were starting to throb in earnest although she didn’t think they were painful enough to be broken. She had broken a couple of ribs before and this was nowhere near that level of pain. 

“Um…” Kate started and then stopped because she could feel the adrenaline that was coursing through her system quickly turning into what felt like a precursor to a panic attack. Looking around, she noticed they were surrounded by a large crowd of people, she was scared that if she tried to answer she would completely break down. Instead she just shook her head. 

Kono seemed to understand because she said, “Come on, I’ll take you down to Five-O and you can give your statement there.”

Kate nodded. She would use the time in the car to get herself together. She was to be reinstated to NCIS in less than a month. And if she fell apart now, what did that say about her preparedness to be an agent again? 

As they made their way to the car they picked up her purse and phone, which thankfully had survived the fall without a crack. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate stared out of the inner office window into the hall as she waited for the Kono to return. It had taken them around twenty minutes to get back to Five-O headquarters, and by that time Kate had calmed herself down enough to give her statement. She had managed it by pulling her NCIS persona over herself like a shield, pushing aside all of the anxiety and fear to be looked over later. Kono had then shown her into her office and said she would return shortly. She had seemed to want to say more, but in the end had just shook her head and had given Kate’s hand a brief squeeze before she had left. 

As she waited, Kate contemplated what had happened after her takedown of Morris. What had surprised her the most was how strong her fear had been at seeing that gun pointed at her. It wasn’t the first time by a long shot that she had been in that position, and you always felt fear. That was when the training took over, that’s why they train as hard and often as they do, so that when the time comes you instinctively know what to do. 

So what was different? Maybe she was rusty? Or maybe because this was the first time she’d faced a gun since she had been shot? Was it because now she knew that only a twist of fate and a shift in the wind had saved her life that day? That nothing she or the others had done had been able to stop that bullet from coming for her. It had been a fluke. That no matter how good she, or Gibbs, or Tony, were it was never going to be a guarantee that some criminal or terrorist might not one day get the upper hand.

Maybe the whole incident had messed her up more than she had realized.

Kate snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of her foot tapping on the floor as her knee nervously bounced up and down. Standing abruptly, she started a slow walk around the office, paying particular attention to the photos on the walls. Along one wall was Kono’s diploma and certificate from the police academy, with accompanying photos with the various family members who were in attendance. 

Then she took a peek at the photos Kono kept on her desk. One was an older one featuring a young smiling Kono, hair wet and slicked back, wearing a wetsuit and holding up a surfing medal. She was bracketed by two older people who were visibly proud, and were probably her mom and dad. The photo next to that one was a wedding party photo at what must have been a Chin and Malia’s wedding. Kono was stunning in her bridesmaid’s dress. Kate picked up the last one. It was a candid shot of the Five-O group standing together in a circle. Danny was obviously telling a funny story, his arms a bit blurry as they were in motion. Kono’s head was thrown back in laughter, and she was luminous. There was such a warmth and vitality to her in that moment.

Staring at Kono’s photo Kate felt a revelation slip over her. She could’ve died today. What would she have regretted more? Loving a smart, kind, and beautiful woman like Kono, even knowing it couldn’t lead anywhere or never taking that chance? 

Just then Kono walked into the office, and Kate put the photo back on the desk feeling herself blush at getting caught being noisy. She murmured a soft, “Sorry.”

Kono gave her an amused smile as she waved away her apology. She stood next to Kate looking at the photo, and said, “That was a great day. Danny was telling the most ridiculous tall tale, about his run in with some mythological creature called the Jersey Devil.”

Kate could feel the warmth coming off Kono as she stood close to her. When there eyes met and held, Kate knew what she wanted and from the look in Kono’s eyes, Kate felt a tine spark of hope that they may be on the same page. She found herself almost unconsciously leaning towards the other woman and she couldn’t help notice as Kono glanced oh so briefly at her mouth. 

Softly, Kate started to say, as she leaned ever closer, “Kono I was thinking…”

At that moment, Chin leaned in around the doorway and said, “Hey Kono, I need your help…”

Kate and Kono jumped apart like two teenagers who had been caught necking.

Chin looked back and forth between them both and then cleared his throat. “Um sorry… Kono can you help me with something? It will only take a few minutes.”

In an overly bright tone Kono answered, “Sure.” Then turning back to Kate said with a tinge of regret in her voice, “I’ll be right back and then we can go to dinner.”

Kate, feeling the moment slipping away, said, in a causal tone that belied the disappointment she felt, “No problem. I’ll be here.”


	4. No Regrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kate and Kono become closer in more ways than one.

Kono was true to her word and returned shortly, and then the two of them went to the restaurant that she had mentioned only that morning. That felt like a million years ago now. Kono had been right, the views were breathtaking, and so was Kono as the candlelight highlighted her already lovely features. 

Kate had thought to broach the subject of the two of them being more than just friends over dinner, but every time she opened her mouth to do so she would either chicken out or she would be interrupted by the wait staff asking if they were okay. By time dessert rolled around she started to have doubts. After her big confession on the beach about not wanting to get involved, how could she change her mind now? Would Kono think she was some sort of flake? So they ate a delicious tiramisu while chatting about what to do the next day as Kono had the day off. Kate threw out a few ideas but internally continued to debate what to do.

By time Kono was walking her up to her front door she had pretty much decided she wasn’t going to say anything. She loved having Kono as her friend. Maybe she should leave well enough alone. What if she ruined everything by asking for more?

As they stood facing each other, Kate cleared her throat nervously and said, “Thank you for such a great evening…” Her voice trailed off and as Kate stared into Kono’s lovely brown eyes knew she had to take a chance or regret it forever. Taking a tentative step forward, she swallowed down her fear and continued, “Do you want to come in?”

Kono looked a bit surprised but then her expression softened, “Kate, what are you asking?”

“I want you. I want to be with you tonight. If you still want me?” Kate asked in a rush, unsure if she was making any sense. 

Kono cupped the side of her face, one thumb running across her cheekbone, “I do still want you, have done since I first saw you, and now that I know more about you, I want you all the more. But are you sure? What about what you said the other night about long distance relationships and regrets?”

“We could just promise each other only the rest of the week and nothing else, and that way there are no expectations and no hurt feelings.” Kate swallowed thickly. She knew she was babbling but she needed Kono to understand, “I’m sure I want to spend the night with you…I know I would regret letting my fear stop me from loving you…” Kate said as she closed the gap between them, letting her eyes close. She brushed her lips against Kono’s, wanting to dive in for more, but pulled back. She needed to make sure Kono was okay with Kate changing the nature of their relationship. She had to make sure she wasn’t pushing the other woman into a decision she would in turn regret. 

When Kate opened her eyes, she saw Kono’s eyes were soft with want, and then a joyful smile spread across her face. 

“No regrets,” Kono whispered as she slipped her arm around Kate, drawing her forwards, and then slowly tilting Kate’s chin up, tracing her lower lip with her thumb, drawing out the anticipation. Then she leaned down and kissed Kate long and deep until Kate moaned low in her throat, her hands clutching at Kono’s back trying to get impossibly closer. Kate reached behind her with one hand trying to find the doorknob to open the door without letting the other woman go. Kono huffed out a laugh against Kate’s lips, broke away, found the doorknob, and pushed the door open. Kate found Kono’s mouth again as Kono walked her backwards across the threshold. Kono closed the door with her foot and they slowly made their way down the hallway, neither wanting to let the other go. Kate pushed Kono against the wall, kissing and mouthing her way down her neck as Kono gasped her name. Kono, burrowing her hands into Kate’s hair pulled her back up and captured her lips once again as Kate pulled her backwards towards the bedroom.

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate vaguely heard a knocking sound followed by a door opening and closing, and not wanting to truly wake up yet she rolled over, her arm searching for Kono’s warm body. She frowned slightly when she came up short. Finally forcing one eyelid open, Kate saw an empty bed. Pouting in disappointment, she dragged herself into a sitting position and pulled the sheet up with her as the morning was a bit chilly for lying about naked. She had just gotten comfortable against the headboard when Kono opened the bedroom door, holding a white bag and a cardboard drink carrier with two covered coffees in her hands. She wore Kate’s grey overcoat, which was buttoned all the way up.

Kate quirked an eyebrow and said with a grin, “Interesting fashion choice.”

Kono gave a laugh and then spun in a slow careful circle, “I’ll have you know this is the very height of haute couture. Besides those who bring such an impractical coat to Hawaii have no room to talk.”

Setting the bag and the coffees down on the side table, Kono leaned over and gave Kate a through kiss. When they broke apart Kono whispered, “Good Morning,” against Kate’s lips before drawing her into another kiss.

“Good morning,” Kate returned a trifle breathlessly. When they parted, Kono straightened up and Kate leaned back against the headboard saying, “It is not impractical in January in Washington D.C., where my flight was almost delayed due to a blizzard.”

“Touché,” Kono said, slowly walking towards the end of the bed, unbuttoning the coat as she went, “You’ll have to excuse my presumption at using your coat. I wanted to make you breakfast this morning, but there was nothing to eat in your kitchen so I called a local café that will deliver, and ordered some muffins and coffee.” When she rounded the end of the bed she faced Kate with a smoldering look in her eyes. As she finished unbuttoning the last button, her hands the only thing keeping the coat closed. “Now, I couldn’t very well answer the door like this, could I?” she asked as she let the coat slip from her bare shoulders, revealing a very naked Kono underneath. 

Kate had to swallow a couple times due to her suddenly dry throat at the sight before her. “No I guess you couldn’t.” Then she crooked her finger, her smile widening as Kono slowly crawled towards her until she was straddling Kate’s lap. Kate put her hands on Kono’s hips and slid them up her back, pulling her closer, capturing her lips with her own, and drawing her into a deep kiss. 

Wanting to get closer without breaking their kiss, Kate shifted them until Kono was on her back with Kate hovering over her. Kono’s grip on her ribs tightened and Kate couldn’t help breaking the kiss and wincing. 

“What’s wrong?” Kono asked, looking up in concern. 

Kate reluctantly moved over, holding her side. Kono sat up and then reached over, lifting Kate’s hand off her rib cage. 

“Wow, that looks really painful,” Kono said, cringing a bit. 

Looking down in confusion, Kate saw what Kono meant. On the left side of her rib cage was a wicked looking bruise that was roughly oval in shape. “Oh,” Kate breathed out, hissing slightly as she probed it gently. “I’d forgotten about that.”

Kono’s eyebrows rose, an incredulous look on her face. “How could you forget about…that?” she gestured towards the dark purple mark. 

“I was distracted,” Kate said as she raised Kono’s hand and brushed a kiss against her knuckles with a wink. “Morris got in a lucky punch yesterday, it looks worse than it is.”

“Do you want a cold compress or some Tylenol or something?” Kono asked, her distress plain in her voice. 

Kate rushed to reassure her, cupping her cheek gently, “No, no, I’m alright, I’ll just be more careful how I move from here on out.” To prove her words she leaned over and brushed a kiss against her mouth. 

Kono chased her lips when Kate started to retreat, breathing out against her mouth, “Are you sure?”

“More than sure,” Kate whispered back, pulling the other woman back onto the bed with a smile. 

Kono smiled down at her, and said with a laugh, “Don’t worry I’ll be gentle.”

Kate laughed up at her and then drew her down into a deep kiss. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

_Next Morning_

“Come on we’re almost there,” Kono said, smiling encouragingly and grabbing Kate’s hand, pulling her forward.

Now Kate had just recently realized that she was a bit out of shape when she had been chasing Henderson down, but she hadn’t truly realized by how much until they started their hike up Koko Head Crater trail.

After spending most of yesterday delightfully in bed together, Kono had proposed a hike to see one of the best view’s that Hawaii had to offer, if Kate was feeling up to it. Kate knew Kono was still concerned about her ribs, but they were feeling much better so she had assured her that it sounded lovely. 

When Kono had woken them up at the crack of dawn, Kate had had a few doubts, but once they ate a quick breakfast and made it to the trailhead before the crowds, her sense of adventure had finally woken up enough to appreciate their outing. The actual trail was unlike anything she had ever hiked before. The trail was at a steep incline and there were old railroad tracks that the hikers used to climb up to the top. To Kate, it felt like being on a never ending Stairmaster. 

About three-fourths of the way was when Kate started to question just how good a shape she was in, as Kono was barely winded and she was starting to flag. Kate had known she had lost some ground since being shot, but that fact was really drilled into her over the course of the 1.8 miles of railroad ties that made up the hike. The doctors had said it would take time to regain her regular stamina but Kate was getting tired of waiting. 

So Kate grasped Kono’s hand a bit tighter and pushed herself harder, determined to get back everything the old Kate had taken for granted, her job, her health, her life, just…everything. 

Once they reached the top, Kate just stood there for the longest time, drinking in the sight before her. Kono was next to her, looking all sorts of delighted. It was a clear day and Kate could see for miles. Off to her left was the Pacific Ocean that went on forever, and to the right was the city surrounded by lush green tropical forests. It was a sight that she had dreamed of since she was a little girl, sitting on her grandmother’s couch. 

The wind picked up and Kate shivered at being this high up, exposed to the wind. She couldn’t help thinking about the last time she had been in a similar situation. Her breath hitched suddenly and tears started to gather in her eyes, not only at the beauty of it all but also at the thought she might have never seen any of this if that day on the roof had turned out differently. Kono wrapped an arm around her waist in silent comfort, and Kate turned into the embrace and leaned her head against Kono’s shoulder. They stood there holding each other for the longest time. Kate placed a kiss on the warm shoulder she was leaning against, and whispered a thank you against Kono’s skin, for her compassion and understanding and for just being with her in this emotional moment. 

Kono asked softly, “Are you okay?”

Surreptitiously wiping a stray tear off her cheek, Kate answered with a quiet, “Yeah, I just…need a moment.”

Kissing the top of her head, Kono said, “Take all the time you need.”

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate could feel the wind tugging at her clothes, and tendrils of hair were starting to escape the pony tail she had it in. The silence was deafening. Kate slowly opened her eyes and she once again saw the Hawaiian skyline, but this time, as she looked around, there were no fellow hikers, families with their kids, and no Kono. She was alone. She tried to call out Kono’s name but her words were swallowed up by the wind. That’s when she heard the familiar low whine and her breathing picked-up as she spun slowly in a circle, trying to find the sound before it was too late only she couldn’t…she never could…

“No!” Kate screamed out as she turned and started running desperate to get away, she felt something grab at her trying to stop her forward progress but she twisted away, “No…No…Please!”

Her shoulder hit something hard, and she fell, hitting the ground even harder, knocking the breath out of her. 

As she lay there gasping and choking, she heard a voice next to her. “Shh…shh…it’s okay Kate. I’m here.”

It was then that Kate felt the warmth of someone sitting next to her and a hand tentatively touched her arm. A word cut through her-all consuming panic: _Kono._

Kate curled into the woman, and she felt Kono’s arms wrap around her as she crooned nonsense words into her ear. Kate returned the embrace and sobbed out her pain. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

“Thank you,” Kate said in a husky whisper as she accepted the cup of hot tea from a very concerned looking Kono. Kate felt embarrassed and humiliated that Kono had seen her at her lowest. When Kate had finally been able to stop crying, and Kono had helped her pick herself off the floor, she had seen that they were in the hallway. It was then that she realized she had apparently jumped out of bed screaming and started to run down the hall only to catch her shoulder on the door jamb and fall to the floor. 

Now the two of them were ensconced on the living room couch, Kono had wrapped a blanket around her shoulders, because she couldn’t stop shivering, although the mug of hot tea she cradled in her hands was helping quite a bit. As she blew on the hot liquid, Kate couldn’t help thinking, with a small smile, that there were two people in her life that connected hot tea to comforting. 

When Kono sat next to her, cradling her own cup of tea, Kate, unable to meet Kono’s concerned gaze, said, “I’m sorry…they aren’t usually…I’m not usually so…I don’t like to talk about…” Kate shut her mouth with a snap, trying to stop herself from rambling. Finally, with a shrug she finished lamely, “I’m sorry.”

Kono reached over and laid a hand on Kate’s knee. “You have nothing to be sorry about. I understand nightmares and how they can be almost as traumatic as what caused them. If you don’t want to tell me about it it’s okay.”

Looking into Kono’s sympathetic eyes, Kate knew what Kono said was true. If she didn’t want to talk about it she wouldn’t have to, but suddenly she wanted Kono to know why. “My nightmares lately are because of this.” She ran her hand nervously over her scar. Kate then told her about Ari and his entanglement with NCIS, and how it had culminated with a sniper shot on a roof that didn’t kill her only because at exactly the right moment the wind shifted. 

The tremor in Kate’s voice became worse the longer she spoke, but she was proud of the fact that it was the first time she had been able to get through the story without needing to stop. “That was over a year ago, and in a couple of weeks I will start back with NCIS. The closer I get to my return date the more frequent they become,” Kate finished, her shivering getting worse.

Kono must’ve noticed as well, because she sat back against the arm of the couch and beckoned her over. Kate dropped the blanket and crawled towards her, turning to sit with her back against Kono’s chest, resting her head against Kono’s shoulder. 

“Thank you for telling me,” Kono said softly as she enfolded Kate into her arms.

“Thank you for listening,” Kate returned. 

They sat together for a time just holding each other. Finally Kono broke the silence, “Do you want to try sleeping again?”

Kate shook her head before sitting up and twisting around. “If you’re tired you can go back to sleep, but I am way too wired and I don’t think I could go back to sleep just yet.”

“Actually, since you’re not tired, I was thinking the sun is going to be up in a little over an hour, and I thought we could go watch it on my favorite stretch of beach,” Kono said. Then, with a mischievous smile growing on her face, said, “I think I have a wetsuit that will fit you.”

Kate, soaking in the sense of adventure literally radiating off of Kono, pushed aside all other thoughts and worries and asked, “A wetsuit? What do you have planned?”

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kono drove them out to her favorite stretch of beach, having stopped for breakfast and coffee on the way. Once there they set up their spot on the beach in the grey dawn light, laying out a blanket putting up an umbrella for use later when the sun was high overhead. They watched the sun peek out over the horizon as they ate their breakfast. The way the light hit the waves was one of the most beautiful sights Kate had ever seen. 

Kono helped her into her wetsuit and then started teaching her how to surf. She started on the beach, showing her how to pop up and stand when she caught a wave, and what to do when she would inevitably fall so she could come back to the surface safely. They then went out into the water, and Kate tried to put into practice all that Kono had taught her. It did not go well at first. Although Kate didn’t know there were so many different ways to fall into the water until that morning, she was still having the time of her life. Just the two of them out on the ocean together, as the world woke up around them. 

While bobbing gently in the water on top of the surfboard Kono had let her borrow, Kate had a feeling of joy bubbling up inside of her. She couldn’t help shooting Kono a broad smile. Kono, who was alongside her on her own surfboard, returned it with a bit of a laugh and then said, “Remember what I said after that last run and I think this time you’ll get it!”

Kate nodded then lay down and started paddling with all her might, trying her best to mirror what Kono was doing beside her. Then, when she felt she’d caught the wave, Kate brought her hands against her board up next to her chest, and pushed up like she was doing a push-up before bringing her back leg forward. She sucked in a breath when she wobbled a bit, and brought up her front leg up in between her hands. When she felt kind of stable, Kate slowly stood up, remembering what Kono told her about keeping her knees bent this time. Arms out in an attempt to keep her balance, Kate all of a sudden realized with shock that she was actually doing it. She was standing. With a shout of joyous disbelief Kate cried out said, “I’m surfing!”

She heard Kono shouting encouragement from somewhere behind her but she was afraid to look for her, worried it might cause her to lose her balance. As the wave carried her all the way to the shallows, Kate couldn’t help the laugh that burst from her as she jumped off her board into the low water. 

Kono came in right next to her and said, “You did so good! How did it feel?”

“Like living, like I could do anything…” Kate breathed out, hoping Kono would know what she meant; she was feeling too much at that moment to be any more eloquent. 

“Well put,” Kono said with a wide smile, then leaned over and gave Kate a victory kiss, which Kate returned passionately. 

“Do you want to go again?” Kono asked a trifle breathlessly when they broke apart. 

“Yes!” Kate shouted enthusiastically.

Kono laughed out, “Okay let’s go!”

Grabbing her surfboard, Kate followed Kono back out to the ocean.

It had taken Kate awhile before she had her first taste of success, but now that she had, she was in love with surfing. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate woke up slowly and stretched before getting out of bed. The nightlight gave off enough light for her to find her way to the bathroom without running into anything in the unfamiliar space. Walking back into Kono’s bedroom after getting a drink of water, Kate paused at the doorway and took in the sight of Kono sleeping, thinking back on one of the most wonderful days of her life. 

After her first taste of success Kate had been very eager to keep going, even though she had fallen off more than she stayed on. The times she had managed to stay upright were so magical that it drove her on. As the early morning had bled into afternoon and the surf had become crowded the two of them had spent more time under their umbrella sitting next to each other, and people watching rather than surfing. Kate had even brought her sketchpad out, wanting to capture every moment of this perfect day. 

They had eaten lunch from a local food truck that was parked nearby, and then spent the rest of the day in and out of the water just enjoying each other’s company. When they had finally had enough of the beach they gathered their stuff and put it all into Kono’s truck. Sitting in the truck, they discussed the various restaurants where they could grab food to go, as neither one wanted to go back out again after getting settled. That was when Kono had invited Kate back to her place for her last night in Hawaii, and Kate had said yes, wanting to see where the other woman lived. So they had grabbed dinner and took it back to Kono’s house. Kono showed her around her small yet comfy home, and then they had washed off the sand and salt water residue from each other in the shower, where they got a bit distracted with warm kisses and slippery caresses until the hot water ran out. 

Afterwards they had eaten the Thai food they had bought and tried to watch a movie in the living room. They found it hard to pay attention to the plot as they held each other, both aware this was their last night together. They finally turned off the movie and moved to the bedroom where their lovemaking took on an almost desperate, yet tender quality. Kate tried to memorize how Kono’s skin had felt against hers, the weight of her lover as they held each other, the way Kono’s eyes would widen with desire and then soften with tenderness. 

Kate pushed away from the doorjamb, realizing she had gotten lost in her thoughts. She was starting to feel sleepy from having been up half the night, and from all the exercise she’d gotten this morning. Walking the rest of the way into the room, she spied her drawing pad on the side table. Picking it up, she flipped through the drawings she had made earlier; there were some of the beach, and the two of them surfing. She stopped on a particularly beautiful one she had made of Kono laying in bed.

**~NCIS/H50~**

_Earlier that evening…_

“I love my family. I do. But they drive me nuts sometimes. How can loving them be both simple and yet so complicated?” Kono asked a loving exasperation in her voice.

Kate shrugged her shoulders. “I have no idea, if you ever figure it out let me know.”

They were laying side by side in the semi-dark, talking quietly to each other. Discussing how work and family was a hard balance to manage, and the good and bad times tied to each. Kate, loving the way the light from the lone bedside light fell across Kono, felt an overwhelming need to sketch her to capture this moment so she would have it forever. 

Clearing her throat nervously, Kate asked, “Can I do a quick sketch of you right now?”

Kono raised her eyebrows in surprise but her mouth quirked in amusement as she did a sweeping gesture across her naked body. “ ‘So you want to draw me like one of your French girls?’ ”

Kate recognizing the quote from the movie _Titanic_ huffed out a laugh and said, “No, I promise to keep it PG-13.”

“Okay why not,” Kono said airily.

Kate ran to get her sketchbook out of her bag as Kono posed on her side, facing Kate, artfully arranging the sheet to cover the bare minimum. 

Kate quickly finished an outline, and then added only a few sparse details as she played more with the shadows due to the low light. After about twenty minutes, Kate stopped and looked at her drawing. She was very happy with it; there was a languid sensuality to the sketch that mixed well with the mischievous twinkle in Kono’s eyes that she had just managed to capture. 

“Finished. What do you think?” Kate nervously handed the sketchbook over to Kono.

Kono sat up and reached for the sketch and looked it over for a few minutes while Kate grew more nervous. 

“Wow, Kate this is really good. Is this how you see me?” Kono asked with a wide smile as she handed back the sketchbook.

Taking it back, Kate laid it aside. She moved to the middle of the bed coming up onto her knees and drew Kono up to meet her until they were mirror images of each other. Drawing her arms around Kono, Kate gave her a light kiss before saying, “That is who you are, Kono Kalakaua, a beautiful, smart, sexy, lovely woman.”

Now it was Kono’s turn to wind her arms around Kate and kiss her deeply. When they broke apart minutes later, a bit breathless, Kono drew her down onto the bed. Kate had an overwhelming need to tell Kono that she would miss her and wanted to see her again, someway, somehow; instead she swallowed those words and whispered words of adoration against her skin instead. 

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate glanced at the clock, and seeing that dawn was just around the corner, she set her sketchbook back down. Lying down on her side next to Kono, she used one hand to prop up her head before reaching over and tucking one stray strand of dark hair behind her lover’s ear. She should be sleeping, as it was almost morning and she had a big day today. She wished they could have another perfect day at the beach like they had yesterday. If only she lived on the islands. Kate couldn’t help a sigh escaping from her at that thought, because as much as she wanted to remain here, she would be leaving. When Kate looked at Kono she felt a tightening in her chest and in that moment she knew she was in trouble. Kono seemed to be everything she had ever looked for, and Kate knew she could love her. Why did they have to live so far apart? Why couldn’t they have more time? Why did she ever think she could keep things casual between them?

Kate could feel tears sting in her eyes and she blew out a watery sigh.

“Hey.” Kate startled at the softly spoken word, looking up she met Kono’s eyes in the dim light. “It’s gonna be alright,” Kono whispered, her voice sounding shaky as she reached for her.

Kate went willingly, noticing the shine to the other woman’s eyes and taking a little comfort in the shared feeling. They held each other, talking quietly together in-between long silences until the alarm went off and they could no longer put off the reality of the day. 


	5. Home Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kate goes back to Washington and tries to settle into her old life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the second to the last chapter. Enjoy!

_Monday_

Kate struggled with her suitcase and practically fell through her front door, trying desperately to not step on all the mail that had accumulated on the floor. Kicking it closed behind her, Kate let go of her giant piece of luggage, giving it a little vengeful kick before plopping down on one of the ottomans near her entryway. One of the wheels on her bag had broken at the airport and so she had been forced to haul it through the terminal to the taxi stand. Then, when she had arrived at the apartment building, she had discovered that the elevator had been shut down for repairs. She ended up walking up two flights dragging her suitcase behind her all the way. 

The nine-hour flight across the U.S. had taxed her severely. She had already been an emotional wreck when she had boarded the plane. Saying goodbye to Kono at the airport had been difficult. The whole time they had waited for her flight she kept trying to come up with a plan that would allow her to stay, each scenario crazier than the last. When her flight had been announced Kono had walked her to the terminal, and had given her a deep passionate kiss that ended with the two of them holding each other tightly for a long moment, until the final boarding call had been announced. Then Kono had given her one final, brief kiss, and had walked away never looking back. Kate knew this because she had watched her until she was out of sight. 

Her flight had been awful. She had been squished between a poor woman who was flying with her sixth-month old to meet up with her husband in D.C., and a burly salesman who kept trying to sell her life insurance. At one point Kate had feigned sleep just to get some peace, and to try to stop a headache from getting worse, although it hadn’t worked. 

Now she was home. 

She wanted to go into her bedroom and sleep for a million years, and maybe cry a little bit, but she couldn’t. She was starting back up with NCIS on Wednesday and that didn’t leave her much time to unpack and get ready to go back to work fulltime. Heaving a watery sigh, Kate forced herself to get up and drag her very uncooperative luggage into the bedroom. She also scooped up her mail off the floor. Finally, she wrestled the cursed bag, onto the bed and was unzipping it just as her phone started dinging. Pulling it out of her pocket, she saw that she had received a lot of messages while she had been unreachable on the plane. 

Putting her phone on speaker, Kate placed it on the bed so she could listen, unpack, and look through her mail at the same time. Tony’s voice boomed out from the phone as he teased her while welcoming her back, and she smiled as he dragged poor McGee onto the call. McGee said a timid hello and hoped she had a good time. Kate just shook her head as Tony cut the other man off and called him one of his ever revolving Mc-nicknames. As the call ended Kate wondered if Tony would ever figure out that pulling pigtails was never a good way to show someone that you liked them. 

The next message was from her dentist so Kate was only half listening as she went through the stack of mail. Most were advertisements and bills, until she came across a medium-sized envelope that was pale gray. As she opened the outer envelope she couldn’t help but notice the paper was thick and expensive feeling. Inside was a smaller envelope with an honest to goodness wax seal keeping it closed, with the letters G and M intertwined. Breaking the seal very carefully, Kate couldn’t help a gasp as she read the invitation. She was cordially invited to the wedding of Leroy Jethro Gibbs and Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard. Kate was so delighted for them, as they both deserved so much happiness and she was so glad they found theirs together. Reading the rest of the invitation, she saw it was in two weeks time and would take place in Gibbs’ backyard. Kate took the R.S.V.P. card out and filled it in. A treacherous thought had her wishing she could add Kono as her plus one, but she shook her head at her foolishness. She put the card into her purse, wanting to give it to Ducky in person when she saw him on Wednesday. 

Putting the other mail aside to deal with later, Kate started in on unpacking. Grabbing the clothes, Kate dragged them to her laundry room. She had never been more thankful that she didn’t have to wash her clothes at a laundromat. After starting a load, she returned to her bedroom, and took out her shoes, intending to place them in the closet, only to stop. All of the sudden she realized one of her flats had a fair amount of sand in it. Pouring the white sand out into her hand, Kate felt her heart clench a bit at this physical reminder. 

It was more than just sand, it encapsulated her entire vacation: the beach was where she had met Kono, the moonlit walk where they had their first kiss, and the perfect day when she had learned to surf had all taken place on the beach. Throwing the shoes carelessly into the closet, Kate walked back to the bed and picked up the grey envelope that had held Gibbs and Ducky’s invitation. Carefully pouring the sand inside Kate then went into the kitchen, opened the junk drawer and found her scotch tape. Sealing the envelope, Kate then went back into her bedroom, wondering if she was being too sentimental as she gave the envelope a brief kiss before placing it on her nightstand table. Maybe she was being a bit maudlin, but she didn’t care, because having that envelope propped up against her lamp where she could see it as she finished unpacking made her feel a little less alone.

**~NCIS/H50~**

_One Week Later_

“Grab your gear. We’ve got a dead marine found floating in the Potomac.”

At Gibbs’ announcement, Kate automatically started to stand up, only to check herself midway and sit back down. She hoped that no one had seen her mistake, but when McGee stopped at her desk with a sympathetic expression on his face she knew her error had been noticed. 

“You’ll be back soon Ka…” Tim started to say before Tony snagged him by the back of his neck, cutting off his speech.

“Come on McCaring, sometimes less is more,” Tony said, slinging his arm around Tim’s shoulders, essentially dragging McGee towards the elevator, where Gibbs was waiting with a scowl on his face. 

Kate appreciated both of the men were trying to help in their own way. Ever since she had been back, Tony had tried to act like she had never been gone and nothing had happened whatsoever, whereas Tim took the opposite approach and hovered… a lot… worry just radiating off him. Neither method had really worked to make her feel any better. She couldn’t pretend it never happened, not with her being out over a year, but neither did she want to be coddled and fussed over. These last two weeks had been an… experience. There had been a part of her that thought, erroneously, that she would just slip back into her job and it would feel natural like a well-worn pair of jeans. Instead there was a persistent sense of unreality to it. It was NCIS but it wasn’t her NCIS. It felt uncomfortable and foreign, like she was a square peg in a round hole.

Gibbs, on the other hand, seemed like he didn’t know how to treat her. Sometimes he was a brusque taskmaster like before, but then other times he would treat her almost with kids gloves. It weirded her out a bit because she never knew which Gibbs she was going to get when she walked into work that day. Since it had only been a week, she was hopeful that everyone would settle down and she would once again find her groove in NCIS.

Glancing around the now empty workroom, Kate sighed and went back to the cold case in front of her. Gibbs had her working on cold cases while she was on desk duty. After rereading her notes she had written down earlier in the week, Kate made a call to one of the witnesses. Even though the case was over five years old she was able to get a hold of the elderly neighbor and ask him a few more questions. Kate took copious notes, even though after five years the witness probably wasn’t going to remember anything new. After hanging up, Kate ran a hand through her hair in frustration; just like she had thought, he had not been able to shed any new light on the case. 

Sighing once again, Kate looked at the clock on her monitor. She had been working for a couple of hours and could probably use a break. She stood and grabbed her purse, and was planning on wandering over to the coffee cart when she spied the wedding invitation still in her wallet. She winced as guilt flooded through her; she should’ve given her R.S.V.P. to Ducky almost a week ago. There was only a week left before the wedding. Trying to assuage her guilt at being a bad guest and friend, Kate decided to head down to autopsy and invite Ducky to go on her break with her. 

Getting into the elevator, Kate pulled out her phone and hit the weather app, wondering if she should snag her jacket, seeing that it was going to be unseasonably warm for the end of February. She decided the blazer she had on would probably be more than okay. Next to the forecast for Washington D.C. was the forecast for Honolulu that she hadn’t been able to bring herself to delete from her phone since she got back. She saw it was going to be a very balmy seventy-nine degrees and she closed her eyes imagining the soft warm wind against her skin. Kate realized with a start that the phantom chill that she had been experiencing ever since she had woken up from her coma hadn’t bothered her once in Hawaii, or since she had been back. So maybe her brain had finally healed, or maybe it had been psychological all along. Either way, the realization brought a smile to her face. 

As the elevator descended Kate wondered what Kono was doing today. Since it was Monday she was probably at work, and if it was a light day she might go to the beach to surf afterwards. Kate couldn’t help wondering if Kono thought of her at all. She had found herself reaching for her phone a few times a day, wanting to call and tell the other woman how her first week back had gone, but she always talked herself out of it, remembering how they had promised no strings attached and no long distance relationships. After all, she was the one who set the rules. _How could she break them now?_

When the elevator dinged Kate shoved her phone back in her purse with a bit more force than necessary and walked out, automatically pushing through the doors of autopsy. Once inside she saw it was empty. A shudder went up her spine as she stood there just inside the swinging doors. Kate’s gaze skittered off the smooth metal tables and she couldn’t help but wonder if she would have been autopsied here if she had died that day. A sickening feeling crept over her as she realized she probably would’ve. Ducky, being the conscientious person he was, would have insisted on it, rather than trusting anyone else to do it. Suddenly the morgue felt like it was closing in on her, she could picture herself lying there on the table with a bullet through the head, her eyes wide open. 

Kate turned and slammed through the doors and straight into Ducky, almost knocking the older man down. She grabbed his arms at the last second and kept them both from falling over.

“Ducky, I’m so sorry…” Kate gasped out, trying to get herself back under control. 

“No worries my dear,” Ducky started to say as he straightened himself up. When he looked over at her his tone changed. “Caitlin, are you all right?”

Kate smiled brightly to try to assuage his fears, but her voice trembled a bit as she said, “I’m fine. I was just wondering if I could persuade you to come get coffee with me.”

Ducky’s brows were drawn together in consternation but he said, “That sounds delightful. I think we could both use some fresh air. Just let me get my jacket.”

Shuddering at the thought of going back into autopsy, Kate said, “Okay, I’ll meet you in the lobby.” And, not waiting for an answer, she turned and walked into the main elevator and pushed the button for the ground floor, willing her breathing to slow down.

**~NCIS/H50~**

Kate sipped her coffee cautiously, setting it back down when it proved to be too hot still. Ducky sat across from her, cradling his cup of tea between his hands.

Thankfully, the café they were sitting in wasn’t too crowded, so they could actually hear each without having to shout. 

“I am so glad you asked me to coffee this morning. I have been meaning to talk to you all week, but with work being fairly busy and the wedding coming up, I am afraid the days have slid past me,” Ducky said with regret in his voice. 

Kate leaned over and squeezed his arm gently in comfort. “Don’t worry about it, Ducky. I’m fine,” she said breezily, leaning back and taking the lid off her coffee trying to speed up the cooling process.

At Ducky’s raised eyebrows, Kate knew she would have to give him more, otherwise he would worry and might take his concerns to Gibbs. “Of course this week has been an adjustment but I think I am handling it okay.”

Ducky just hummed as he took a sip of his tea.

Kate wasn’t sure if that was a negative hum or a positive one, but she thought a distraction might be in order. “I did want to ask you about Gibbs though. At times he treats me like he used to, and other times not so much. Any thoughts?”

Ducky set down his cup and sighed. “I am afraid, my dear, that Jethro is dealing with a massive amount of guilt where you are concerned.”

Kate sat up a bit straighter in shock at the news. “It wasn’t his fault Ducky, and I don’t blame him _at all_ ,” she stated putting special emphasis on the last few words. Because she didn’t blame Gibbs, it had never even crossed her mind. 

“I have told him countless times that it wasn’t his fault, but you know how he is. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders,” Ducky said. She must have looked troubled because he continued quickly, “Now don’t you worry my dear, he will soon get over it and be back to his regular self.”

Kate nodded, not wanting to stress the other man out so close to the wedding. Pulling the R.S.V.P. card from her purse, she handed it over with an apology.

Ducky waved her apology away. “We kind of surprised everyone with the announcement so we are just happy you could make it. Are you thinking of bringing anyone? Although we planned a small wedding, if you would like to you may bring along a guest. There will be plenty of room.”

Kate felt something clench in her chest at the thought of the one person she desperately wanted to bring but couldn’t. She could imagine sitting next to Kono, whispering to each other as they held hands, listening to Gibbs and Ducky exchange their vows. She shook her head, banishing the image, and heaved a heavy sigh. Looking up she met Ducky’s kind blue eyes, and almost against her will she asked, “Ducky, do you believe you can fall in love with someone after only knowing them for a week?”

Ducky gently shook his head, and said, “No, I don’t believe so, no matter what the poets say.”

Kate looked back down, twisting the coffee cup in her hands, and now it was Ducky’s turn to reach out and place a hand on her arm. When she looked up he continued in a gentler tone of voice, “However, I do believe, in such a short time you can get a good start on falling in love, that you can make a connection. I also think that feeling that strong pull to another person is a rare phenomenon indeed. But I believe real, lasting love comes from truly knowing another person. So when you do meet that someone, you must seize the opportunity, no matter the difficulties, because you never know when it could be the love of your life.”

“Like you and Gibbs,” Kate offered up with a slight smile. 

Ducky, with what looked like a slight blush and a bit of a bashful smile, said, “Yes like Jethro and I.”

**~NCIS/H50~**

The slight March breeze that whispered through the backyard had Kate absently pulling her coat closer, not really minding the cold so she could witness the ceremony of two of her favorite people. 

“By the power visited in me by the state of Virginia, you may now kiss the groom.”

Gibbs placed his hands on either side of Ducky’s face and leaned in, kissing the other man deeply. Kate and the other guests stood and cheered. She continued to clap as the men walked down the short aisle together, their hands clasped, with wide, delighted smiles on their faces. 

After the grooms had passed and had gone back into the house, Kate sniffed and started to search her pockets. She usually didn’t cry at weddings but watching Gibbs and Ducky finally get their happily-ever-after brought tears to her eyes. It didn’t help that she had felt especially fragile these last few weeks, what with starting back at NCIS and it being a bigger and rougher adjustment then she had thought. But the biggest reason was how much she still missed Kono. Kate found herself missing the other woman more now than she had when she first returned to D.C. There were so many things she wanted to share with her about her day and she wanted to know how Kono’s day was going. _Was she missing Kate as much? Or was Kate alone with these feelings?_

Finally, in the inner pocket, she found a small packet of tissues, and pulling one out she dabbed at the tears. Kate headed back towards the house to figure out how she could help, as others started to clear the chairs off the back lawn so the tables could be set up along with a small dance floor. Crumpling up the tissue, Kate pushed it back into the inner pocket of her jacket, and when she did her fingers brushed up against a piece of paper. Absentmindedly pulling the paper out, Kate walked up the backyard stairs, unfolding it. The name signed to the bottom stopped Kate in her tracks.

“Excuse me,” came a clipped voice behind her. Kate whispered a distracted apology as she moved out of the way of the caterer, continuing to read the letter. 

“Dear Kate,

I know we said this was to be just a vacation romance with no strings attached and no regrets, but as our days together draw to a close I can already feel those future regrets crowding me. The time we have spent together over the past weeks have been some of the best moments for me in a long time. I think we could have something worth fighting for, something worth all the hard work a long distance relationship takes. I have never felt so close to a person so fast. So I started to ask myself what I would regret more, taking the chance and reaching out to you, or not taking the chance at all? It didn’t take me long to make up my mind, so I wrote this note while you were sleeping and left it somewhere you would find it. Now, if you don’t feel the same please do me the favor of just throwing this note away forgetting you ever found it, and let our time together continue to be just a pleasant memory. But if you feel the same way I do, please call me and let’s see if we can make this work. 

Love, Kono”

There were people streaming all around her getting the backyard ready for the reception, but Kate barely knew they were there. In a daze, she went back down the stairs dodging people carrying covered dishes of food and centerpieces. Finally rounding the corner of the house, Kate hugged the letter to her chest and forced herself to take in a deep breath and blow it out again, trying to regain control. Two thoughts kept circling through her head. 

Kono was feeling the same as her.

Kono wanted to try to be together.

An almost unspeakable joy welled up within her. Pulling out her phone, Kate quickly found Kono’s contact information. She couldn’t help running her eyes over the photo she had chosen. It was a candid shot of Kono. They had just come in from another round of surfing, and Kono had looked over at her with such a soft smile on her face. Kate had chosen that picture because whenever she looked at it she felt cared for and maybe even loved. Now pressing the number, Kate nervously waited for Kono to pick up, sighing a bit in disappointment when it went to voicemail, and then panicking when it beeped and she had no idea what to say.

Finally she blurted out, “Hi Kono it’s me… although you probably know that from the caller ID. I am at a wedding…and I just found your note. Please call me back as soon as you can… I want… I want to try as well.” Kate didn’t know what else to say, and she especially didn’t want to say it to a voicemail so she quickly hung up. Rereading the note a few times more Kate carefully folded it back up and placed it safely back inside her pocket. Then glancing at her watch, she realized she had been away for too long and hurried back around the corner. 

What met her eyes made her stop in her tracks. In the time she had been away they had totally transformed the backyard. What had been rows of chairs with a long aisle in-between now had groupings of tables encircling a small dance floor. And on that dance floor were Gibbs and Ducky, having their first dance to what sounded like _La Vie En Rose_ by Louis Armstrong. Kate couldn’t help a wide smile from spreading across her face as she threaded her way to the table that held Tim, Abby, Tony, and Jimmy. Giving them all a grateful smile for saving her a seat, she sat down, placing her phone face up on the table so she wouldn’t miss Kono if she called back. She turned her attention back to the newly married couple. The two of them looked like they were in their own world as they swayed gently to the music. As the song ended, another classic song by Armstrong began to play. Kate recognized it as _What a Wonderful World_ , one of her personal favorites, as more couples began to join them on the dance floor. 

Kate turned her phone over and over in her hand, losing herself in her thoughts that ventured somewhere between a cold backyard in Washington and a sunny beach in Hawaii. Looking up from her phone, she realized that Abby and Jimmy were missing from the table. She spied them out on the dance floor together, and then it was just her, Tony, and Tim left. 

Standing next to her was Tony, who held out his hand and asked, “You are looking awful pensive there Kate. Why don’t you let me take your mind off of whatever is bothering you? Will you do me the honor of dancing with me?”

Usually she would say yes, because she had to admit Tony was a great dancer, but she was afraid that she might miss Kono’s call. She offered up an apologetic smile and said, “Sorry, I think I am going to sit this one out.”

“You wound me Kate,” Tony said, withdrawing his hand and placing it over his heart with a mock frown on his face. 

Kate was relieved to see he wasn’t really offended; he was just giving her a hard time. “Tim’s available. Why don’t you ask him?” Kate suggested, with a smile at Tony and a wink in Tim’s direction.

“Yeah, I am more than ready to be swept off my feet,” Tim teased.

Tony looked thrown for a second, before his charismatic smile returned and he rose to the challenge, offering his hand to the younger man. With a growing smile, Tim placed his hand in Tony’s, and he let the older man pull him out into the dance floor. Kate watched as they moved seamlessly together, slowly dancing to the soft music. She could see the exact moment when Tim relaxed in Tony’s arms, and Tony started to treat the dance less like a challenge and more like something he actually wanted to do. Kate looked on as they grew incrementally closer. Tony danced Tim slowly around the dance floor until there was barely any space between them. She couldn’t help wishing the two of them would soon realize what they felt for each other underneath all of the teasing and banter. They were family and Kate wanted them to be happy.

Kate took a sip of the punch that someone had gotten for her and checked the time on her phone; it had been around forty-five minutes since she had left Kono the voicemail, but it felt like an eternity. 

“Are you having a good time?” Ducky asked kindly as he sat down next to her. 

Kate turned and gave him her full attention. “I am. Congratulations! The wedding was so beautiful.” 

“Thank you my dear. For being a bit last moment, it came together rather nicely,” Ducky exclaimed in a voice overflowing with happiness.

They chatted for a few more moments about the wedding and the subsequent honeymoon when Kate’s phone rang. Glancing at it, Kate saw Kono’s picture pop up with a request for a FaceTime call. Kate said apologetically, “I have to take this.”

“Of course my dear of course,” Ducky said graciously. 

Kate gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and then hightailed it up the back stairs and into the house where it was quieter, before answering the phone.

As the phone connected and Kate saw Kono’s radiant face for the first time in weeks, she couldn’t help the gasp that passed her lips before she pulled herself together and managed to squeak out a, “Hi.”

Kono looked just as taken aback, as they just took in the sight of each other for a few moments. 

“I am so glad you called,” Kono finally breathed out and from the look on her face Kate believed it. It was a mixture of joy and relief. 

“I’m sorry, I just found your note. I wish I had found it the moment I stepped off the plane,” Kate said in a rush, her words almost tripping over themselves before she forced herself to slow down. She took a deep breath and simply said, “I’ve missed you.”

Kono seemed to almost melt at her words as she repeated them back, “I’ve missed you too.” Then she asked, “How are we going to do this?”

Kono sounded more unsure than Kate had ever heard her, and she was unsure herself but then she remembered Ducky’s advice about seizing the opportunity when love comes your way, she said, “How about we take it one call at a time and see where we end up?”

Kono bit her lip worriedly, then with a more confident nod and a soft smile, said, “I like the sound of that.”


	6. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a wrap! I hope you enjoyed my little story. I worked on this labor of love for most of 2020 as a way to cope with everything. Plus I really wanted Kono and Kate to have a much better ending then they got in canon, they deserve their happily ever after. Once again thank you so much to the talented Rose_Malmaison for the amazing art. 
> 
> Thanks so much for reading!

__

_May_

Kate juggled her purse, her phone, and her dinner–which was in a paper bag and growing colder by the moment–in her hands as she struggled to open her front door. Finally she was able to unlock the door and rush inside. Glancing at the clock in her entryway, Kate saw she had exactly one minute. Dropping the keys and her purse on the couch, Kate ran into her bedroom, grabbing her laptop. She set it up at the kitchen table and placed her dinner next to it. While she booted the laptop she shrugged out of her jacket and then sat down. Just as the laptop came on, the Skype icon started to ring. Kate couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face. She had made it just in time. 

Pressing the button, Kate felt a familiar thrill when Kono’s smiling face came up on her laptop screen. 

“Hello,” Kono said a bright smile on her face. 

“Hello, sweetheart,” Kate answered back, blushing slightly.

“I love it when you do that,” Kono said.

Kate knew Kono loved all the endearments she threw her way, so she tried to use them as much as possible. “Of course I know, darling.”

“Stop it,” Kono said bashfully, and her expression belied her words, as she looked very pleased. “So what did you bring to date night?”

“Unfortunately I was running late so I just grabbed a burger,” Kate grumbled, holding up a grease soaked paper bag so the laptop camera would catch it.

Kono grimaced and said, “I’m sorry. I wish I could share my meal with you. I had the day off so I managed to cook, for once.” 

Kate caught a brief glimpse of Mahi Mahi and joked, “I’m totally jealous.”

They both started to dig into their meals, talking about their days. Kate loved these calls, even though the time difference made it a bit difficult. Tonight, for instance, Kate was eating dinner and Kono was technically eating lunch, but they made it work. They managed to video chat just about every few days, and although it wasn’t quite like being physically together, it was close enough that they were the highlight of Kate’s day. 

Kono was picking her brain about a current case Five-O was working on when there was a knock on her door.

Kate tried to suppress her grin but in the end couldn’t.

“I wonder who that is?” Kate asked, her tone comically false.

Kono half rose, asking, “What did you do?” before she walked off screen.

Kate heard Kono answer the door and then say a muffled thank you before she returned, her arms full of flowers.

Kono was beaming at her from the screen, and Kate grinned back and said delightedly, “Oh good, they got there in time. I told the florist what time I wanted them delivered because I wanted to see your reaction.”

“You are the sweetest, most thoughtful woman,” Kono said, and then she buried her face in the blooms, looking up, her eyes a bit teary. “These are all my favorites.”

**~NCIS/H50~**

_July_

Kate watched in growing consternation as the Skype app tried to once again get hold of Kono. This was the second time she had tried. Glancing at her watch, she saw it was now forty minutes past seven. They had a date for seven o’clock this evening and Kate, for once, had gotten off of work right on time. She had been sitting at her laptop since six-thirty, impatiently waiting for the woman she was falling in love with to appear on her screen. Only so far, no go. 

Picking up her cell phone, Kate contemplated calling Kono but she didn’t want to disturb her if she was still working. This wouldn’t be the first Skype call that one of them had to miss, because of work and Kate of course understood, but it was always still such a downer. They didn’t have nearly enough time together, so each missed call hurt in a way that it probably wouldn’t have if they weren’t so far away from each other. 

Of course they had a procedure for missed calls: the person who missed would text or call as soon as possible to let the other know they were okay. 

Just as Kate was going to grab something to drink, her Skype app started to ring. Relief flooded through her as she accepted the call.

Her enthusiastic greeting died on her lips when she caught sight of Kono. Although Kono was giving her a brave smile, Kate was distracted by the black eye she was sporting on the right side of her face.

“Sweetheart, are you okay?” Kate scooted to the edge of her chair to get closer to the screen.

Kono rushed to reassure her, “I’m fine. A suspect got in a lucky punch. Other than this reminder to duck next time, I am perfectly okay.”

Kate brought her hand up without thinking, wanting to hold and comfort Kono. Dropping her hand in frustration, She said, “I want to be there with you so bad right now.”

Kono’s smile fell and she whispered, “I wish you could too.”

“Oh, love it’s okay,” Kate rushed to reassure her, “I have some good news. I was approved for some extra time off when you come to visit,” Kate finished, hoping to distract Kono and make them both feel better.

Kate was glad to see a small smile start up on her lips, and then Kono said a bit huskily, “One month. I can’t wait to just be with you again.”

Kate blew out a shaky breath and made a silent wish for the next month to pass as quickly as possible. “Me, too.”

**~NCIS/H50~**

_August_

It was the soft light of dawn breaking that eventually woke up Kate. Opening her eyes Kate knew something was different, but couldn’t think of what it was until the arm around her waist tightened slightly and a soft kiss was placed against the back of her neck.

Then with a growing smile and an even greater surge of joy she remembered Kono had flown into D.C. yesterday, and would be here for a week. Kate had pulled every string she could, to get the time off so she wouldn’t miss a single moment with her girlfriend. 

Shifting around until she was face to face with Kono, who still had her eyes closed, although Kate was pretty sure she was awake. She placed a kiss at the end of Kono’s nose and wished her a _good morning_ in a sleep rough voice. 

Kono smiled softly and opened her eyes. She whispered her good morning against Kate’s mouth then followed up her words with a gentle kiss. 

Kate reached up, and tucked a lock of hair that had escaped from Kono’s ponytail behind her ear. “I am so happy you are here.” 

Kono’s smiled widened and she said, “I’ve missed you.”

“Oh sweetheart, me too,” Kate replied, and then the words that had been on the tip of her tongue with every Skype call spilled out. “I love you so much.”

Kono gasped softly, tenderly cupping Kate’s cheek, and said, “I love you too.”

And as Kono drew her back into her arms and as their kisses turned passionate, Kate realized that a week together was never going to be enough.

**~NCIS/H50~**

_January_

Kate stretched her arms over her head, clasping her hands together, and leaning first to one side and then to the other, trying to work the kinks out of her back. Dropping her hands with a resigned sigh, Kate got back to work. It was now ten o’clock in the evening and Kate had been here all day. They had wrapped up their latest case around ten this morning, but thanks to it being an interagency tangled-up nightmare, there was more paperwork than normal. She was the last one in the bullpen, as McGee and DiNozzo had finished up about a half an hour ago. They had left together talking about maybe grabbing a bite to eat at a diner they all liked to frequent. The two men had offered to bring her back something, but she had declined as she was almost finished and just wanted to work straight through and then go home. 

Kate had taken a quick break a couple of hours ago and had called Kono to tell her she wouldn’t make their video date tonight. Kono had understood, but after she had hung up, Kate couldn’t help but feel frustrated. Her relationship with Kono was going great. They still video chatted pretty much every day, and Kate had even been able to visit for a long weekend around Christmas, but at the end of that weekend Kate hadn’t wanted to get back on the plane and come back to D.C. Washington no longer felt like home. Kono instead had become her touchstone; she had become the person Kate wanted to come home to, and to make a home with. 

Shaking her head and telling herself to focus, Kate started typing in her report for the case from that morning. Fifteen minutes later she finally added her electronic signature to the bottom of her report, and with a very pleased click of her mouse, she turned it in. With a tired but self-satisfied smile, Kate started closing all of the tabs she had open. She was just about to turn her computer off when Ducky walked into the bullpen, looking a bit lost. 

“Hey Ducky. What are you doing here so late?” Kate asked, a welcoming smile spreading across her face. Ducky’s broad smile reminded her she really needed to invite him and Gibbs over for dinner again, as it had been a few months since their wedding. 

Ducky walked over and said pleasantly, “Caitlin, it is good to see you. I was looking for Jethro. He had to finish up some paperwork, so I said I would wait for him and we could go home together. He finally texted me that he was done so I closed everything down, but he never came to autopsy. I thought I would come up here and fetch him but I see that he is not here either.”

Kate sat back and thought about it for a moment before she remembered, “Oh, I’m sorry, Ducky. I think the Director called him into his office just as he was about to get into the elevator.”

“Ah,” Ducky said with understanding before he snagged one of the office chairs and rolled it over to Kate’s desk. “I hope you don’t mind if I stay with you while I wait.”

“Of course not,” Kate reassured him. “I was just finishing up, myself, so I would love the company.” Ducky was one of her favorite people so she never minded spending time with him. 

Placing his hat in his lap, Ducky asked after Kono. Kate was warmed by Ducky’s inquiry after the other woman. The two of them had hit it off when Kono had visited last August and they had gone to Ducky and Gibbs’ house for dinner. So Kate told him all about some of the quirkier aspects of Kono working with the Five-O members. 

Ducky chuckled softly after a particularly funny story, and then, in a kind tone, asked, “You really love her don’t you?”

Kate huffed out a bit of an embarrassed laugh at being so transparent. “Yeah I really do. I just wish we didn’t live so far away from each other.”

Ducky hummed thoughtfully, and after a few moments of silence he inquired, “Do you happen to check the human resources job postings very often?”

Confused a bit by the non-sequitur Kate, said, “No, why?”

“Oh, no reason,” Ducky said, with a bit of a twinkle in his eye, before turning slightly towards the stairs and exclaiming, “Oh Jethro, there you are.”

Kate looked over to see Gibbs walking down the stairs looking extremely tired, but she watched when he caught sight of Ducky and a very soft expression crossed his face. Kate had rarely seen two people more in love with each other.

Gibbs walked over and gave Ducky a brief kiss. Looking over at Kate, he suggested, “If you are almost done we could walk you out.”

Shaking her head, Kate said, “Thank you but I still have a few things to wrap up. I’ll see you on Monday.”

“Very well, my dear, see you Monday,” Ducky said, and then tucking his hand into the crook of Gibbs’ arm they walked out of the bullpen and got into the elevator. 

Kate yawned widely and then straightened up her desk. Just as she was about to shut down her computer she remembered Ducky’s words, and went to the NCIS inner office job listings. She scrolled through their most recent posts until her eyes caught on the word ‘Hawaii.’ Clicking on the link, Kate saw that the Honolulu office had a position available for an experienced agent. 

With a raising sense of anticipation, Kate read through all the details. She met all the requirements, and they were accepting applications through February. She could apply.

Biting her lip, Kate read through the listing once again, making sure she had read everything right. Then she sat back and thought through the ramifications, as hopeful adrenaline coursed through her veins. She could apply, and if it was accepted she could be in Hawaii in six months time. 

Blowing out a shuddering breath, Kate knew there was someone she had to talk to first. She quickly copied the listing and sent it to Kono’s email CCing herself. 

Glancing at her watch she saw it was going on eleven. Quickly converting the time, Kate figured Kono would just be getting off of work. Picking up her phone, Kate called Kono and was relieved when she picked up after a few rings.

“Hey Kate. I wasn’t expecting to hear from you until tomorrow,” Kono said, delight evident in her voice. 

Kate was unsure how to broach the subject, because she wanted Kono’s honest opinion and she definitely didn’t want to pressure her. Finally she blurted out, “Hey sweetheart, something just came up so I wanted to call you and get your thoughts on it. I sent you an email with all the details.”

“Okay let me get to my office and pull it up,” Kono said.

As Kate listened to the office noises in the background, her knee started to bounce up and down, more rapidly the longer she waited.

“Let’s see… here it is,” Kono said a bit distractedly. “Oh my goodness, Kate, are you going to apply?” She asked excitedly.

Just hearing the excitement in her girlfriend’s voice pushed away any doubts, and Kate answered, “Yes, I think I will.”

**~NCIS/H50~**

_July_

Kate grabbed the last cardboard box out of the shipping pod. Walking into their newly rented house, Kate was feeling utterly exhausted but she still had a spring to her step. She had applied for the Honolulu NCIS position in January, and things had moved rather quickly after that. Just a few weeks later she had a phone interview with the senior agent. Then a month after that she had an in-person interview with the director of the Honolulu office when he had been in town for a conference. They had offered her the job a few weeks after that. Kono had been ecstatic, and they had started making plans on her moving out by July. The hard part for Kate had been breaking the news to Gibbs, Ducky, and the rest of the team. All but Ducky had been shocked and a bit sad. But then they all rallied around her and helped her get her apartment packed and loaded into a shipping pod that would eventually meet her in Hawaii. They had also thrown her a going away/housewarming party right before she left to help Kono get settled in their new home. 

Kate had originally intended to get her own apartment, not wanting to foist herself on Kono and her small condo. When Kono had broached the subject of them getting a place together, Kate had been relieved because she wanted more than anything to live with Kono after so much time apart. It hadn’t taken them long to find a house for rent in a quiet neighborhood that was near enough to both their workplaces, and close enough to the beach, to suit them both. 

Setting a box on the living room floor next to the other ones, Kate opened it up and started taking the books out, placing them in a bookshelf. As she worked she hummed along to the music playing on the radio in the background. When she finished that box, she broke it down and placed it in an ever growing pile next to the front door. Feeling a pair of arms encircle her from behind, she couldn’t help giggling softly when she felt a kiss against the curve of her neck. 

Turning in Kono’s arms, Kate wound her arms around her girlfriend’s shoulders. As they held each other they started slowly swaying with the music. 

After a few minutes of them dancing their way around the living room, Kono asked, “Any regrets?”

Kate looking up into Kono’s beautiful brown eyes, only feeling an overwhelming sense of homecoming and love, answered with a soft smile, “None at all.” 

**~NCIS/H50~**

_One Year Later_

Jogging up the walkway, Kate shifted the bag of rolls that she had been asked to bring from one hand to the other. She was about thirty minutes behind the estimated time she’d told Kono she would arrive. Her last interview with a potential witness had gone on longer than she had anticipated, plus traffic had made her late to the once a week Ohana BBQ. Knocking on the door, Kate was greeted by very pregnant Malia, who ushered her inside. They made a quick detour to the kitchen where Kate handed the bread over to Danny, who gave her a brief hug before returning to make the salad. Steve came downstairs just as she and Malia were heading towards the backyard and he stopped them to ask how Kate’s day was. She gave him a brief rundown, although he was interested Kate couldn’t help but notice that he kept glancing behind her. After they parted, Steve made a beeline towards the kitchen and Danny. Once there, he laid a hand against the back of his partner’s neck and whispered something in his ear that made the other man blush and smile widely.

Kate and Malia shared a knowing look over the two burgeoning lovebirds before walking outside. Kate asked how her maternity leave was going, and listened as she gave all the latest news on the ongoing debate between her and Chin on what color to paint the baby’s room. Throwing her two cents in on the color controversy as they walked out back, Kate’s gaze immediately searched for Kono. She was talking to Chin next to the grill, and the pair seemed to be keeping an eye on the burgers. Malia went over to join Chin, and when Kono saw Kate she gave her a big smile and walked over.

“Happy two month anniversary,” Kono said, brown eyes sparkling, as she stopped beside Kate, then leaned over and gave her a lingering kiss. 

Now it was Kate’s turn to smile broadly. Her wife was a romantic. _Her wife_. Those two words still sent a thrill through her. Their wedding had been a small spur, of the moment affair with only the rest of the Five-O team physically present. Thankfully her NCIS family had been able to watch a live video stream that Tim and Chin had been able to set up on short notice. Even though it was last minute, it had been absolutely perfect. 

“Happy two month anniversary,” Kate repeated when they parted, then allowed Kono to pull her back over to where Chin and Malia were still manning the grill. They were soon drawn into a discussion of baby names. Steve and Danny emerged from the house with the salad and bread just in time for Chin to take the hamburgers off the grill. They all sat down around the long table, passing dishes back and forth until their plates were filled. 

Kono’s hand rested lightly on Kate’s thigh as they ate and chatted with the others. Sitting there, Kate couldn’t help but to pause and look around the table, and wonder at how much her life had changed in the past two years. She had started off, that cold winter day, feeling unmoored and lost in a life that no longer felt like her own, and now she had a new life, and a new home. Now she had a family back in Washington and a new one in Hawaii, and, most importantly she had the love of her life sitting next to her.

With that thought she took Kono’s hand in hers, running her thumb across the knuckles, before bringing it up to her mouth and placing a gentle kiss on the back. Kono turned to her and gave her a soft smile and a tender look filled with promise. Feeling a wave of joy, Kate leaned towards Kono, who met her halfway, sealing the promise with a kiss. 

**The End**


End file.
